Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill said Thursday he will pay the salary of the photographer who had his sideline credential suspended by the NFL.
Kevin Fitzgibbons, who was contracted by the NFL to shoot Dolphins home games, was involved in Hill’s touchdown celebration in Week 6 against the Panthers. Hill grabbed Fitzgibbons’ cell phone after scoring and filmed himself doing a back flip.
Hill was penalized for celebrating with a prop but was not fined. Fitzgibbons, though, announced on social media he lost his credential for the remainer of the season and “possibly for good.”
Hill, who absolved Fitzgibbons of blame in his postgame interview in Week 6, said Thursday he and Fitzgibbons are longtime friends.
“Me and K-Fitz, we’ve got a long history together,” Hill said, via Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN. “The news is something that I already knew. I told him, ‘Don’t let this get to you. Just hold your head up. You’re still young. Continue to do what you love.’ Me and him are going to continue to work together.
“I told him I was going to cover his salary, whatever the NFL was going to pay him or whatever. I told him I was going to make sure that I do what’s right and take care of you, make sure you’re not out of a job. That’s my guy.”
The video went viral, with more than 4.5 million views on TikTok and 100,000 likes on Instagram.
