Dolphins Offense Should Make History Again in the franchise
The Miami Dolphins offense is at the doorstep of making franchise history.
The Dolphins, who have possessed the No. 1-ranked offense in the NFL for most of the 2023 season, are on pace to have two 1,000-yard receivers, and a 1,000-yard rusher for the first time in franchise history.
Tyreek Hill, who sat out the 30-0 win over the New York Jets on Sunday because of the ankle he sprained the previous week, already has 1,542 receiving yards, and tailback Raheem Mostert and and Jaylen Waddle should eclipse the 1,000-yard threshold in Sunday’s home game against the Dallas Cowboys.
Mostert, who is the NFL’s third-leading rusher and set a franchise record by scoring his 19th and 20th touchdowns against the Jets, is 34 rushing yards away from his first 1,000-yard rushing season.
“He’s been very important to this offense. This goes all the way back to last year,” quarterback Tua Tagovailoa said about Mostert, who was 76 yards away from becoming a 1,000-yard rusher last season. “He’s been a tremendous part of the success that we’ve had offensively and the success that we have happens because the guys up front, happens because of the guys outside, and those guys are doing really well at executing, and it’s really fun seeing those guys have fun.”
Waddle, who caught eight passes for 142 yards and one touchdown against the Jets, is 36 yards away from his third 1,000-yard receiving season.
When Waddle passes the 1,000-yard threshold, he’ll become the first receiver in Dolphins history to produce 1,000-yard receiving seasons in three straight years.
Waddle’s 964 yards, which he’s produced on 71 receptions in 14 games, rank him ninth in the NFL this season.
“Jaylen had probably the best offseason, if not the best, right there with the top three offseasons of any player on our team, and he came into the season with a lot of momentum, then had just some random injuries that he was dealing with,” coach Mike McDaniel said, explaining Waddle’s journey this season. “One of the coolest parts about this season has been watching him progress through those injuries, and then for the last three weeks.”
The closest the Dolphins ever came to having two 1,000-yard receivers was 1991 when Mark Clayton (1,053) and Mark Duper (1,085) eclipsed the 1,000-yard threshold, and tailback Mark Higgs finished the season with 905 rushing yards.
