The attorneys for Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill and Hill's accuser issued a joint statement that the parties have "resolved their differences" after an altercation in mid-June. With no formal charges against Hill, it seems unlikely that he'll face any NFL discipline for the incident. We just nudged Hill up the WR Rankings.
Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa enters Year 4 looking to build off a breakout 2022. He tallied four top-six fantasy finishes, a number that might have been higher if not for several concussions. Overall, Tua benefited from the dynamic pairing of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle – plus the scheme of new HC Mike McDaniel. Credit McDaniel for truly emphasizing a Hill–Waddle duo that combined for a 51.2% target share. Tua also ranked 5th in RPO pass attempts; 3rd in play-action throws. 2023 turns up even more speed following the arrival of RB Devon Achane. While we’d still like to see O-line improvement, Tua’s ultimately positioned for a top-12 fantasy season. See exactly where he sits in the QB rankings.
Dolphins beat writer Chris Perkins believes WR Braxton Berrios “will almost certainly” be the starting slot receiver. Berrios inked a one-year deal with $3 million guaranteed early in free agency. While he brings value as a returner, the 27-year-old totaled just 18 catches (in 17 games) last year with the Jets. Berrios also brings the speed (4.44 forty-time) that HC Mike McDaniel covets. He’ll be on the DFS/deep league spot-start radar if one of Tyreek Hill or Jaylen Waddle miss time.
Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill is being investigated on assault and battery allegations for an incident at a Miami Beach marina over the weekend. According to insider Andy Slater, Hill allegedly slapped an employee of the marina on the back of the head during an argument. That employee has declined to press charges at this time. We'll keep you updated on the situation. For now, we're not moving Hill in the 2023 WR Rankings -- but it's not crazy to pass on him in the first five or six picks of fantasy drafts if you want to avoid any suspension risk.
UPDATE: The employee has decided to press charges. We'll continue to monitor this story for developments.
Multiple Dolphins beat writers singled out RB Devon Achane as a standout at OTAs this week. "Lost count of Achane's explosives," insider Travis Wingfield tweeted. The Miami Herald's Daniel Oyefusi noted that Achane was "very active in the passing game." And the rookie "got rave reviews from teammates," according to NFL Network's Cameron Wolfe. These are pad-less practices in May, but it's still encouraging to hear that Achane is off to a strong start. We'll be looking for clues on exactly how much volume the 188-pounder will handle this season.
Per reporter Cameron Wolfe, Dolphins WR Jaylen Waddle “intentionally put on weight” over the offseason. The third-year WR was already stout at a listed 5’10, 182 pounds. Waddle owns 179 career catches — a number only five WRs have topped across their first two NFL seasons. Waddle profiles as a fringe WR1 for 2023.
The Dolphins signed TE Tyler Kroft. He joins one of the weakest TE rooms in the NFL alongside Durham Smythe and Eric Saubert. It gives Kroft a chance to find playing time, but he's still not an exciting fantasy pick. The 30-year-old has only once reached 200 receiving yards in a season and never topped 404. And HC Mike McDaniels' Dolphins targeted TEs on only 12.8% of their passes last year -- well below the league-wide average of 20.3%.
The Dolphins selected Texas A&M RB Devon Achane in Round 3 of the 2023 NFL Draft. If you like playing Madden, you’ll love Achane. This 5’9, 188-pound dynamo possesses the best speed of any RB in the 2023 class (4.32-second 40-yard time at the Combine). He makes up for what he lacks in size in elite acceleration, quality pass-catching skills, and an underappreciated ability to slip defenders in close quarters. Achane is unlikely ever to become the leader of an NFL backfield, but remember that he logged 196 carries as a junior at Texas A&M in 2022. If the Dolphins give him enough of a role early on, we could be talking about a 2023 PPR factor. Unfortunately, the risk with Achane is that he could be pigeonholed into a role so specific that it’ll be tough to know when to start him week to week. Note: Miami returns veteran RBs Jeff Wilson and Raheem Mostert.
Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa admitted that he considered retiring after sustaining multiple concussions last season. “Yeah, I think I considered it, you know, for a time, having sat down with my family, having sat down with my wife and having those kind of conversations,” he said. Tua ultimately opted to keep playing, citing his love for the game and his desire for his son to grow up watching his dad play. He's spent part of this offseason doing jiu-jitsu to "learn how to fall." Tagovailoa explained, "Learned some grappling techniques. Learned some other things too that I don’t think I should disclose. But for the most part, learned how to fall. You think it’s easy. Just don’t fall and hit your head. But a lot more to it.” The head injuries add risk to Tua' short- and long-term fantasy outlooks. But he was excellent last year in his first season under HC Mike McDaniel, ranking 8th among QBs in fantasy points per game.
Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill said in a recent radio appearance that he plans on retiring after the 2025 season. Hill will be 31 at that point. "I'm going for 10 [seasons], man," Hill said. "I'm gonna finish out this contract with the Dolphins and then I'm gonna call it quits. I want to go into the business side." Plans can change, of course -- especially if Hill is still healthy and playing at a high level a few years down the road. But this is certainly worth filing away for dynasty players.
The Dolphins and RB Jeff Wilson Jr. have agreed to a two-year contract reportedly worth up to $8.2 million. This move is in correspondence with another deal struck earlier on Tuesday keeping his teammate Raheem Mostert in town, effectively making this Dolphins backfield the same as it was in 2022. Upon Wilson Jr.'s arrival via trade in Week 9, he and Mostert produced well in tandem. The two concluded the season ranking as the RB35 and RB33 overall in PPR scoring respectively in that stretch. That said, Wilson Jr. has more financial upside in his contract. If we're to give an edge to one over the other, you could logically follow the money and go with Wilson Jr. as the favorite. There's still room for the Dolphins to add to this RB room via the NFL Draft, but Wilson Jr. is the best bet to produce flex-level fantasy output with RB2 upside in a given week.
The Dolphins are re-signing RB Raheem Mostert on a two-year, $5.6 million agreement, according to multiple reports. It's a bigger contract than the one-year, $2.125 million pact that brought Mostert in last season. But the annual average is similar. (ESPN's Adam Schefter adds that incentives give the contract a max value of $7.6 million.) Mostert opened last season splitting work with Chase Edmonds and finished it splitting with Jeff Wilson Jr. Despite that, Mostert tallied career highs in most categories while missing just one game. We're expecting further moves in the Miami backfield, which will affect Mostert's fantasy outlook. But he's a fine value right now at his late-round best ball ADP.
The Patriots are trading TE Jonnu Smith to the Falcons, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. The move primarily looks like a salary dump for New England. Smith caught just 55 passes at 9.8 yards per reception across two seasons after signing a $50 million deal as a 2021 free agent. Atlanta might seem like an awkward fit for him as well, with TE Kyle Pitts already on hand. But the third-year Falcon is more receiver than TE. He has played just 21.8% and 25.6% of pass snaps from an inline position the past two years. Smith, meanwhile, has never run less than 52.6% from there. He was inline on 59.5% of routes last year and topped 64% in each of his first three NFL seasons. He spent those three years -- plus one more -- playing under current Falcons HC Arthur Smith. In Tennessee, Smith served as TEs coach over Smith's first two years, and then OC for the other two. Smith increased his receptions every season there but topped out with a 41-448-8 receiving line in 2020. It'll be similarly tough for Smith to find much fantasy value in Atlanta's run-heavy offense. And we're not downgrading Pitts' outlook for the short or long term on Smith's arrival. Check our dynasty rankings to see how optimistic we remain on Pitts. Smith's departure from New England, meanwhile, certainly can't hurt TE Hunter Henry's opportunities.
The Rams are trading CB Jalen Ramsey to the Dolphins for a third-round pick in this year's NFL Draft and TE Hunter Long. L.A. is obviously clearing salary amid what looks like a necessary rebuild. Ramsey is also coming off a down season that included allowing a career-high 98.6 passer rating in coverage, according to Pro Football Focus. But he wasn't terrible and doesn't turn 29 until late October. So there's room to bounce back. And getting Ramsey can only help a Miami defense that missed CB Byron Jones for all of last season after Achilles' tendon surgery. Long is the sneaky fantasy move here. It's not great that he caught just one pass across two seasons since arriving as a third-round pick. But the current Miami regime didn't draft him. And if Long were just a throw-in here, we'd bet on the Rams targeting a different position. The team still has TEs Tyler Higbee and Brycen Hopkins under contract. We're guessing L.A. views Long as an upside player. He delivered an elite-level 8.61 Relative Athletic Score as a draft prospect. That followed 89 catches and 14.6 yards per reception across three seasons at Boston College. Long looks worth stashing in dynasty leagues over the two years left on his rookie contract. Higbee's deal runs out after 2023.
The Dolphins have picked up QB Tua Tagovailoa’s 5th-year option. In doing so, Miami guarantees his $23.4 million salary for 2024. Essentially, he’s locked in as their short-term starter. Consider Tua-Tyreek Hill and Tua-Jaylen Waddle fine best ball stacks at cost.
Texas A&M RB Devon Achane ran the fastest 40-yard dash time of all RBs at the NFL Combine. The former track athlete logged an official 4.32 time measuring at 5’8½ and 188 pounds. Given Achane’s smaller frame, this weight/speed combination is extremely encouraging. We’re potentially looking at a top-5 RB in this 2023 class with the right scheme fit for his all-purpose skill set. Achane’s performance today solidified the likelihood of receiving early Day 2 draft capital.
Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa has cleared the concussion protocol after meeting with "several medical professionals," according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. "They are confident he’ll be 100% when the time comes for football," Rapoport adds. Tagovailoa sustained 2 concussions -- and appeared to sustain a 3rd -- during the 2022 season, ultimately missing 4 games and most of another. When he was on the field, he scored as a top 10 fantasy QB. It sets him up as 1 of the bigger risk/reward picks at QB in 2023 fantasy drafts.
Dolphins WR Jaylen Waddle posted an empty 3-catch, 44-yard line against Buffalo. Waddle mishandled a couple of potentially game-changing deep balls. He was also tackled inside the 1 on a rush attempt. Prior to that, the young WR picked up a shoulder injury that he quickly returned from. His 2nd season ends with 80-1400-8 in 18 games. Going forward, his value is closely tied to the health of Tua Tagovailoa.
Ravens QB Tyler Huntley (shoulder, wrist) is active for tonight's Wild Card game vs. the Bengals. NFL Network reported this morning that Huntley is expected to start but that Baltimore might also use QB Anthony Brown. It's a situation to avoid in fantasy lineups.
QB Tua Tagovailoa is expected to return as the Dolphins' starter next season, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Tagovailoa suffered 3 -- ahem, 2 -- concussions this season, ultimately missing 4 games and most of another. His play tailed off late in the season, but he finished with a 65% completion rate and big 8.9 yards per attempt. "The Dolphins have been pleased with Tagovailoa's development this season under first-year coach Mike McDaniel," per Schefter, and "medical professionals also are confident that Tagovailoa should be able to resume his NFL career next season, if not sooner."
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