When word first emerged that the Dolphins were going to add cornerback Eli Apple, receiver Tyreek Hill responded by posting to social media, “Monday practice gone be fun.”
It was a reference to the previous beef Hill and Apple had shared over the last couple of seasons, beginning when Hill was still a member of the Chiefs.
But behind the scenes, Hill expressed to team brass that he had no issue with Miami adding the veteran defensive back — which he shared with reporters on Friday in a humorous way.
Hill noted that when he heard from head coach Mike McDaniel about the team signing Apple, his reaction was “Alright, cool.”
“He was like, ‘You ain’t got a problem with that?’ I was like, ‘Nah, I ain’t got a problem with that. Why would I have a problem with that?’” Hill said, via Daniel Oyefusi of the Miami Herald. “So, I just feel like a lot of people, they just get fed into what’s going on in social media. And it’s not really what it is. I was fired up for us to be able to add another competitor to this team because that’ll make us better in the long run, having that cornerback depth. Eli, he’s a great guy. I know we’ve had some battles, but at the end of the day, we’re all trying to win, we’re all trying to get better.
“Now, [the way I look at it] is, I get to embarrass him every day,” Hill added with a laugh.
The Dolphins needed to add at defensive back after Jalen Ramsey went down with a torn meniscus. He’s expected to be out until December.
But it remains to be seen if Apple will become a significant contributor for Miami in 2023.