Hill and Waddle Continue Towards Rarified Air
The Miami Dolphins are no strangers to prolific wide receiver duos. The Marks Brothers dominated the first half of Dan Marino’s career and Irving Fryar and Mark Ingram put together solid years as a tandem in the ’90s. But any football fan can see there is nothing like the current Dolphins pair Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.
“Jaylen Waddle and I are the fastest wide receiver duo of all time,” Hill said during training camp. By the time it’s all said and done, they will likely have a lot of “All-Time” things to brag about.
Hill and Waddle each recorded a 100-plus yard game this past Sunday in a 20-17 win against the Jacksonville Jaguars. It was the seventh time the two both hit the 100-plus yard milestone in the same game as teammates. Miami is 5-2 when this occurs, including winning each of the last three games this occurred, per OptaStats.
If you’re looking for comparables, there are none. Hill and Waddle’s seven concurrent 100-yard games are more than up the NFL’s next-closest pair. A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith of the Philadelphia Eagles and D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett of the Seattle Seahawks are next up with three. The only other active wide receiver pair to hit 100-plus yards each in multiple games would be Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.
At this pace, Hill and Waddle should own the all-time record in a matter of weeks. The only other tandems that have more dual 100-plus yard receiving games than Miami’s receivers are Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin (8), and Keenan McCardell and Jimmy Smith (9). Even an incredible pairing like Randy Moss and Cris Carter are only tied with Waddle and Hill. Three more triple-digit outputs from the two will secure them the most such games in league history. Forget accomplishing the record, they’re gonna smash it.
This week Hill and Waddle face the Buffalo Bills on a Thursday Night Football matchup. They have yet to hit their signature Double-Triple against the Bills. In fact they have both struggled by their standards.
Weirdly enough, in his seven career regular-season games against the Bills, Hill has never hit the 100-yard mark. His high against Buffalo is 82 yards, from last seasons Week 18 loss in Miami. He also has just two touchdowns against Buffalo in his career.
Not surprisingly, Hill is 2-5 in these contests. Waddle has had a touch more individual success, but still, he’s just passed the 100-yard mark in two of his five regular season games and one touchdown against the Bills in the regular season.
Last year, 51% of Miami’s total targets were to Waddle and Hill across, and for Miami to have success on Thursday night, this formula shouldnt change. Now is not the time to shy away from feeding their two best players. With running backs Raheem Mostert and De’Von Achane dealing with injuries and an unknown status for Thursday, Hill and Waddle have to be superhero-caliber. With Miami’s top-heavy, but thin wide receiver room, Tua Tagovailoa will have to continue to heavily rely on his pair of aces. What better time to add to their record and continue to rewrite the definition of what it means to be a prolific duo in the NFL?
Up Next