With just over two minutes remaining in the third quarter of the Miami Dolphins’ season finale against the New York Jets, Miami seemed destined to soon fall out of playoff contention.
The Dolphins were behind 18-6 on the scoreboard, and elsewhere in the NFL, the Denver Broncos were cruising to a win in a game that Miami needed them to lose.
It was then that wide receiver Jaylen Waddle seemingly had a noteworthy exchange with fellow receiver Tyreek Hill. It seems as if footage shows the moment when Hill essentially quit the game.
I found this nugget while rewatching the game. This wasn’t just quitting on his team, it was quitting on everyone who believed in him: the fans, the coaches, and even his family. The moment Waddle asked Reek if he was done, it became painfully clear, he gave up. That choice… pic.twitter.com/uLe4anxuLb
— TCBHammer (@HammerTcb) January 9, 2025
“Aye Cheetah, you done?” Waddle seemingly asked Hill.
Hill’s showing against the Jets was a microcosm of his third season as a member of the Dolphins. With a playoff berth still a possibility, he totaled just 20 receiving yards on two receptions. Hill finished the 2024 season with 959 receiving yards, marking his fewest in a single season since the 2019 campaign.
Waddle didn’t give the Dolphins much production against New York either. He finished with more than double the number of receiving yards Hill did but still didn’t even lead Miami in that metric. Instead, it was tight end Jonnu Smith, who totaled 56 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown.
The squad didn’t have a great day offensively with usual starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa sidelined again. Backup quarterback Tyler Huntley started in place of Tagovailoa.
In order for the Dolphins to secure what would have been their third consecutive playoff appearance, Miami would have needed to beat the Jets and see the Kansas City Chiefs come out on top against the Broncos. Unfortunately for the Dolphins, neither of those two boxes got checked.
The Dolphins lost to the Jets by a final score of 32-20, and with nothing significant to play for, the Chiefs benched key players and got blown out by Denver. Kansas City didn’t muster a single point all game while the Broncos lit up the scoreboard for 38 points.
Miami ended the regular season with a record of 8-9 with its loss to the Jets, marking the organization’s first losing campaign since the 2019 season.
While Hill removed himself from the season finale in the second half and later made some comments that raised questions about his Dolphins future, it looks like the wide receiver is still committed to Miami.
BREAKING: Tyreek Hill's agent says the wide receiver is committed to the Miami Dolphins. pic.twitter.com/d08DdIDUvh
— Dolphin Nation (@Dolphin_Nation) January 9, 2025
Hopefully, next season will be a smoother ride.
