THE NFL WILL wait for the outcome of a child abuse investigation involving Kansas City Chiefs star Tyreek Hill before taking any disciplinary action against the receiver, league commissioner Roger Goodell said on Wednesday.
Speaking to reporters at the NFL owner’s spring meeting, Goodell said the league did not want to impose on an investigation by the Kansas Department for Children and Families and local law enforcement.
“As you know, there’s a court proceeding still going on involving CPS — Child Protection Service — and we will not interfere with that,” Goodell said.
“The priority is this young child, and so we will obviously be cooperative with whatever the court wants there.”
Hill is under investigation for an incident which left his three-year-old son with a broken arm.
Authorities in Kansas City initially said they would not press charges in the case, even though they believed a crime had taken place, because there was no means of identifying who was responsible.
However the investigation was reopened after the emergence of an audio tape last month which caught Hill and his fiancee discussing the injuries to the child.
Hill, regarded as one of the best wide receivers in the NFL, has been suspended by the Chiefs indefinitely until the team obtains more information.
Goodell said he backed the Chiefs stance but would not speculate on what eventual punishment the 25-year-old might receive.
“We are prepared to go ahead and have an interview whenever we have the permission to do so, and then we’ll make a determination based on what information we have at that point in time,” Goodell said.
“And so, again, I won’t speculate on where we’ll go, but we’ll certainly get all the information we possibly can as soon as possible.”
Hill, who has a history of violent outbursts, is certain to face a hefty suspension if the allegations against him are found to have substance.
Former Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson was suspended for all but one game of the season in 2014 for inflicting injuries on his four-year-old son with a tree branch as a form of corporal punishment.
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