Dolphins Passing Thoughts: Waddle's Big Jump, Drops, Tyreek's Mea Culpa
Jaylen Waddle is on pace to accomplish something only one other Miami Dolphins player has ever done, and it's among the many examples of the explosion of the passing game in 2022.
Waddle currently leads the NFL in yards per reception (among qualifying players) at 18.02, with 1,117 yards on 62 catches. Gabriel Davis of the Buffalo Bills is second at 17.90.
The only Dolphins player to lead the NFL in that category was Chris Chambers, who averaged 18.4 in 2001 when he was a rookie second-round pick out of Wisconsin.
For anyone wondering, Waddle probably has no shot at the franchise record, which is the ridiculous 25.1 posted in 1971 by Hall of Famer Paul Warfield.
Waddle's average is impressive enough in itself, but it's even more remarkable when you consider that he was under 10 yards per catch in 2021 when he set the NFL rookie record for catches with 104. His average of 9.8 yards last year ranked him 98th in the NFL among qualifying players.
What's changed?
That's a pretty easy answer and it's certainly not Waddle's speed, which has been pretty eye-opening since he arrived. in South Florida as the sixth overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft.
The improvement in Waddle's receiving average clearly is the result of a combination — in whatever order you prefer — of Mike McDaniel's scheme, Tua Tagovailoa's big jump at quarterback, and having Tyreek Hill (and his equally stupid speed) on the other side.
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TYREEK TAKES THE BLAME
While Tyreek Hill leads the Dolphins (and is second in the NFL) with 1,117 receiving yards, he trails Waddle in average per reception. He's at 14.03, which ranks a respectable 17th in the league.
As for where that would rank in his career, it would be well above the 11.2 he averaged last year in Kansas City when he reached 100 catches for the first time but below each of the four seasons before that.
But the combination of catches and average has helped Hill already surpass his career high with 1,529 yards, which also has set a new Dolphins record — Mark Clayton held the mark with 1,389 in 1984.
Hill and Waddle are tied for the team lead with seven touchdowns, but Hill was bemoaning the one that got away in the second quarter of the 32-29 loss at Buffalo on Saturday.
Hill had nine catches for 89 yards and a touchdown against Buffalo, but made clear via Twitter the next day he wasn't happy with his performance.
DOLPHINS DROPS ... IS IT A PROBLEM?
If it seems the Dolphins have dropped a lot of passes this season, well, it's because they have.
While what constitutes a "drop" is subjected, the Dolphins are tied for the NFL "lead" in this dubious category with the Buffalo Bills with 34, according to Pro Football Reference.
Hill leads the Dolphins in this category, according to Pro Football Reference, with eight, followed by Waddle with seven and fullback Alec Ingold with four. Trent Sherfield has three, with Mike Gesicki, Raheem Mostert and Tanner Conner with two apiece.
Conner, the rookie free agent, dropped passes in consecutive weeks against the Jets and Minnesota in October and hasn't been targeted since.
Wide receivers coach Wes Welker was asked during his media session Thursday whether drops were an issue for his position group and he quickly said no.
He also made an interesting comment when he said that the end zone pass that Hill failed to corral in the second quarter would have been "a hell of a catch."
Welker later was asked whether he would consider it a drop, and he hesitated before saying yes — the answer you absolutely would expect from a former NFL wide receiver coach who now coaches that position.
But the mere fact that he hesitated proves there's no merit to the idea that it wasn't necessarily and out-an-out drop. After all, if it's a "hell of a catch" is the ball is caught, then how can it be a drop if it isn't caught?
It's why we referred to it all along as a makable catch that Hill didn't make as opposed to a drop.
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