Earlier this year, Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill celebrated a touchdown by grabbing a camera from someone in the end zone and doing a backflip, recording the stunt on video.
The Dolphins were flagged. Hill was not fined, presumably because one of the league’s social-media accounts posted the video (before deleting it).
Now, the man whose camera Hill used contends his game credentials have been suspended.
“We can confirm that the league pulled his gameday credentials for this season,” the NFL told PFT via email on Wednesday.
Kevin Fitzgibbons seems to suggest in the video explaining the situation that he was directly employed by the NFL. Whatever the arrangement, it’s now over. At least for the rest of the 2023 season.
The celebration did indeed seem to be planned and premeditated. But so was the turkey-leg celebration arranged last Thursday by Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott. Over the weekend, the Dallas Morning News reported that employees of Legends Hospitality (partially owned by Cowboys owner Jerry Jones) cooked and stashed the turkey legs. Will they be suspended for the rest of the year, too?
The broader point here is that these folks were doing something at the direct behest of a player. What were they supposed to do? Refuse?
It all just seems odd. The league flags the Dolphins. The video goes up on a league-owner social-media account. Hill doesn’t get fined, even though he should have been.
And now the kid who gave Hill the camera can’t work at games? It comes off as unfair and heavy-handed.