Tyreek Hill is axed by the Miami Dolphins as NFL teams face scramble to sign controversial star

The Miami Dolphins have released controversial wide receiver Tyreek Hill.

Hill, who turns 32 on March 1, is currently recovering from a dislocated knee and torn ACL.

After four seasons in Miami, the eight-time Pro Bowler will now hit the open market as an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his NFL career.

Despite his horrific knee injury, teams are still expected to line up to sign the veteran receiver. Hill was voted the NFL’s No. 1 player in the Top 100 as recently as the 2023 season.

Releasing Hill now means the Dolphins will not have to pay an $11million guarantee next month and removes $36m in cash from next season’s roster. 

The Dolphins also decided to cut Bradley Chubb, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and James Daniels on Monday. Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s future remains uncertain.

Back in October, Hill admitted he hadn’t yet decided if he was done playing football after suffering a season-ending knee injury against the New York Jets on September 29.

Hill, 31, has played 10 NFL seasons. He posted consecutive 1,700-yard receiving campaigns in his first two years with Miami, including a league-leading 1,799 yards in 2023.

The five-time All-Pro entered last season aiming to regain that elite form after a relatively down year in 2024, when he recorded 81 catches for 959 yards – his lowest totals in both categories since 2019.

Whether Hill´s decorated career – which includes a Super Bowl title with Kansas City in 2020 – will continue remains uncertain.

In an interview on the podcast of Terron Armstead, his former Dolphins teammate, Hill said he’d make up his mind about his career at some point but his focus was on recovering from surgery to repair significant damage to his left knee. 

‘At the end of the day, I feel like that decision is based upon how I feel and where my mindset is at the moment,’ Hill said on the podcast. ‘I’m happy with the career that I’ve had. I love playing football. I love it, but it takes a lot. It takes a lot on you mentally, it takes a lot on you physically.

‘I’m at the point now where I need to have a conversation with mom, family, everybody. Wherever my mind is at the time, the decision will be made, but I know right now, I haven’t had time to live in the moment.’

Hill is the father to at least seven children, although a definitive count isn’t available. 

In early January, Hill pushed a Florida family court to have his ex-wife removed from timesharing visits with their daughter.

A court filing on Hill’s behalf alleged his ex-wife Keeta Vaccaro has been using his time with their child ‘for her own selfish reasons.’

Specifically, Vaccaro is trying to ‘reconcile with the husband’ and has made ‘requests for additional money’ from him, Hill’s attorney, Gary Frederick Jr., claimed in the filing.

Vaccaro’s attorney flatly rejected Hill’s claims in a statement provided to the Daily Mail.

Vaccaro, the sister of former NFL safety Kenny Vaccaro, claimed in a September filing that she was physically abused by Hill during their 17-month marriage. As a result of the claims, the NFL launched an investigation into Hill, who has previously faced domestic violence allegations from other women. 

The 31-year-old Hill has denied abusing Vaccaro. He pleaded guilty in 2014 to striking his the-pregnant girlfriend, but later denied that in a secretly recorded 2019 exchange with the woman.

The Georgia native was suspended by the Kansas City Chiefs during the 2019 season amid a child-abuse investigation involving his son. However, charges were never filed in the case and he returned to the Chiefs, who gave him a three-year, $54m extension.

The following season he was traded to the Dolphins.

Vaccaro initiated the divorce proceedings against Hill in April of 2025. The couple married in November of 2023 – just months after another woman gave birth to his son.