It’s arguable that no member of the Miami Dolphins’ offensive attack saw a bigger drop-off in his level of play from the 2024 season compared to the 2023 campaign than wide receiver Tyreek Hill.
Just one season after he racked up an unbelievable 1,799 receiving yards and led the league in that stat, he almost didn’t even lead the Dolphins in receiving yards. After all, tight end Jonnu Smith finished with 884 receiving yards in the 2024 campaign compared to Hill’s 959.
There’s no way around the fact that Hill had a down year in his third season with the Dolphins, but there are also plenty of reasons to believe that the eight-time Pro Bowler is primed for a bounce-back year in the 2025 season. Hill recently spoke on his mentality heading into the 2025 campaign.
Tyreek Hill shared his mentality for the 2025 season with us today:
“I want to see what it looks like when I just focus on football, on myself and family … I feel like I haven’t given the best version of Tyreek my whole entire career”
— Marcel Louis-Jacques (@Marcel_LJ) July 22, 2025
Here are three reasons why folks should believe Hill will make up for his lackluster play in the 2024 season with a strong fourth season as a Dolphin.
1. Improved health after wrist injury
Before the 2024 season even started, Hill suffered a wrist injury. He sustained the injury in a joint practice with the Washington Commanders back in August of 2024.
Doctors supposedly recommended that Hill get season-ending surgery on his wrist to treat the injury, but he didn’t listen to the professional advice and suited up in all 17 of Miami’s games last season.
However, Hill underwent surgery this offseason to treat his injury, and according to recent comments from the star receiver, he seems to be back in tip-top shape.
Hill claimed while speaking to the media that he’s healthy once again following his surgery. He also said that he’s been putting in the work this offseason and has plenty to prove heading into his fourth season as a Dolphin. It’s worth noting that Hill alleged that he’s even shed some weight, too.
Tyreek Hill says he’s back to himself again healthy after wrist surgery that kept him out most of spring. He says he’s been busting his tail all offseason and has plenty to prove to himself, teammates, etc.
Tyreek lost weight — 183 in minicamp — says at 31 he hasn’t lost a step. pic.twitter.com/MqN6cxjEqF
— Cameron Wolfe (@CameronWolfe) July 22, 2025
Ultimately, poor injury luck might be the biggest reason to blame for Hill’s underwhelming production last season. If he is indeed at full strength once again, Dolphins fans should be optimistic that he can produce at the level he did in his opening two seasons in Miami.
2. Potential for more games played with Tua Tagovailoa
Tagovailoa and Hill have formed a dynamic offensive duo in recent years, and they’ve been the linchpins to Miami’s offensive success under head coach Mike McDaniel. But Hill and Tagovailoa shared the field only so much a season ago because the latter dealt with the injury bug.
Head and hip injuries limited Tagovailoa to just 11 games played with the Dolphins in the 2024 season, and Hill’s production suffered in a major way when Tagovailoa wasn’t the one leading Miami’s offense.
For perspective, Hill averaged 56.4 receiving yards per game in his third season with the Dolphins, which is already the second-lowest mark of his career. But in the six games sans Tagovailoa, that number dropped to 44.2 receiving yards per game.
Hill reached 100 receiving yards in just one of those six contests that saw another quarterback outside of Tagovailoa start. Additionally, he ended up with 40 receiving yards or fewer in four of those games, with his worst performance of that span being when he totaled just eight receiving yards against the Indianapolis Colts.
The numbers suggest that if Tagovailoa has better injury luck than he did a season ago, Hill will be a major beneficiary.
3. Darren Waller could draw defensive attention away from Hill
While the Dolphins did trade away Smith after he had a career year and maybe the best season from a player at the position in team history, Miami also traded for a Smith replacement who could free up Hill on the offensive end.
Miami traded a sixth-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft in exchange for tight end Darren Waller and a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.
Waller is a former Pro Bowler, and he isn’t all that far removed from being in the conversation for an elite tight end in the NFL. He totaled quadruple digits in receiving yards as recently as the 2020 campaign with the Las Vegas Raiders.
He didn’t play in the 2024 season after he temporarily retired from the league, but even in his most recent NFL campaign he provided his team with solid production. He appeared in 12 games with the New York Giants in the 2023 season and racked up 552 receiving yards, one receiving touchdown and 25 first downs receiving.
