Tyreek Hill’s Olympics pursuit could alter offseason regimen

Tyreek Hill has other sporting goals even beyond the Super Bowl this year but to do so would change his offseason regimen.

On the surface, it sounds like an exciting idea.

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill spoke to reporters during the festivities leading up to Super Bowl LIV this week and stated that he had some sporting goals beyond even playing in the biggest game of his career. He said he also hopes to try out for the upcoming U.S. Summer Olympics track team.

If you’re familiar with Hill’s history, you’ll know he was a former track star in high school who could have likely chased any and all professional aspirations in the sport. Track and Field named Hill a High School Athlete of the Year in 2012 and USA Today named him to their All-Track team. Check out some of the highlights from those days below:

Even if you were unfamiliar with Hill’s track days, the idea of running in the Olympics still should not surprise anyone given that he’s known as the NFL’s fastest player. Nicknamed Cheetah, Hill is consistently timed as one of the fastest players on the field each season by NFL Next Gen Stats.

“Hopefully after this season, if I’m healthy and my mind is still in the right place, I really want to try to qualify for some Olympic teams.” The 2020 Summer Olympic games are scheduled to take place in Tokyo, Japan from July 24 to August 9.

While it’s fun to think about Hill having such an incredible extra-curricular activity this offseason, further quotes and the timing of it all could make such a pursuit frustrating for the team. Consider what Hill said to reporters about the preparation it would take.

“The thing is, I’m weighing like 195 [pounds] right now,” said Hill. “Back in high school, when I ran a 9.9 [100-meter dash], I was like 175. So if I do it, it will be like me changing my whole diet, changing everything that I’ve been doing to get to this point now.”

If Tyreek has steadily grown into a top-tier wide receiver by learning how to handle a larger frame, how much would dropping back down to his college weight inhibit his success? Even more, the timing cuts right into a huge portion of training camp. Would Hill get Andy Reid‘s permission to miss so much time? And is the change in body weight anything to worry about?

But the Olympics are the Olympics, an international exhibition of the world’s greatest athletes and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for someone like Hill. Anyone with the chance to pursue it should, right? Even if it disrupts a few things for a few months?

For most of us, if the Chiefs win the Super Bowl, we might be inclined to sit back and say “go ahead!” like a permissive parent already checked out. Then again, maybe Hill is just tossing out some pipe dreams as talking points and we don’t need to take anything too seriously. Either way, that’s a future concern and not a current one with the Super Bowl only days away.