2023 Team Previews: Miami Dolphins

Miami Dolphins Fantasy Preview 2023

All ADP data is courtesy of Fantasy Pros.

** = target in drafts at this ADP

Top 120

**Tyreek Hill, WR (ADP: 7): Hill is simply an amazing NFL player. In his first season away from the Chiefs offense and the NFL’s best QB, Patrick Mahomes, many expected him to experience some drop off from his previous highs. Instead, Hill proved how incredible he is and had his best season in some respects. Hill’s known for his freakish, blazing speed, but that superpower can obscure what a complete technician he is. Hill can blow by anyone at any time, but he’s also expert level at just about every single route on the tree. Hill set career highs in targets (170), receptions (119) and yards (1,710) and has set a goal of 2,000 yards this season. It’s entirely possible he hits that mark, especially since the Dolphins mitigated QB Tua Tagovailoa’s injury risk a bit by bringing in Mike White as a capable backup. Hill is being drafted as the WR4 right now, but I don’t think it would be crazy for anyone to take him at No. 1 overall if they really wanted him.

**Jaylen Waddle, WR (ADP: 25): Is Waddle the best No. 2 WR in football? He’s being drafted that way, and despite being second in the Dolphins’ pass catching pecking order, he can absolutely be a fantasy WR1. Volume isn’t an issue for Waddle, but it is capped with Hill on the field. That’s alright when Waddle can average over 18 yards per catch as he did in 2022. He managed more than 1,300 yards on 75 catches, and scored eight touchdowns, half of which came from more than 20 yards out. Much like Hill, Waddle is versatile and can damage a secondary in a variety of ways. Despite being sized like a slot receiver, Waddle spent a ton of time on the outside and burned defenses on nines, digs, posts and corner routes. He also torched defenses on slant routes, his most frequently run route (20.8% per Reception Perception) succeeding at an 80% clip. At an 81.8% success rate vs. zone, he’s going to be among the most consistent receivers in fantasy because with his and Hill’s ridiculous speed, man coverage is not an option most of the time.

Tua Tagovailoa, QB (ADP: 90): Tua’s multiple concussions last season were scary as hell, and combined with his previous injury history, it makes sense that fantasy managers are worried about his durability. But most of us aren’t doctors, and we have to treat Tua like he’s ready to play, because by all accounts, he is. And with this uniquely fast complement of pass catchers around him, this ADP is insane value if he plays all season. In 13 games last season he tossed 25 touchdown passes and averaged 272.9 yards per game (3,548 total passing yards). When you pass on the elite fantasy QBs early, you’re looking for spike games primarily. Consistency can be nice, but it’s more important for your later-drafted QB to be able to go toe-to-toe with a Jalen Hurts or Patrick Mahomes in any given week to give you a chance. When healthy, Tua absolutely provides that. Last year he put up 300+ yards four times, and was over 270 yards in more than half his games. He also threw for three or more touchdowns four times, lighting up the Ravens for six in a single game. He graded as PFF’s No. 8 QB, and earned their fifth-best passing mark (81.4). If you miss out on QBs early, or simply aren’t ready to pack away the “wait on QB” philosophy, Tua is the target.

Devon Achane, RB (ADP: 108): Achane is a very interesting rookie RB, and he figures to be polarizing. Like Hill and Waddle, Achane has scorching speed and put up damn near 1,300 total yards as a junior at Texas A&M. He has no issues finding the end zone, notching double-digit TDs in back-to-back seasons to finish his college career, and he’s shown he can catch the football which is going to be critical to fantasy success. The speed on the field figures to give Achane a lot of space to dice up defenses when he gets the ball; the issue is, how much will he get the ball? Hill and Waddle will demand a ton of targets, and while Achane’s speed is electric, he’s listed at a very slight 5’9, 185 lbs. That means he’s unlikely to get much, if any, between the tackles work as a rookie and he will have to be hyper-efficient on the opportunities he does receive. I’m a believer in the talent, so if he can get around 10 touches per game, he’ll be fantasy relevant. This backfield has some veterans in it though, so I wouldn’t go too crazy with expectations. He could pop, but he’s more likely a boom-or-bust FLEX in Year 1.

Fantasy Relevant (121-200 ADP)

Raheem Mostert, RB (ADP: 137): Mostert had his best season in 2022, and is, like Hill, Waddle and Achane, absurdly fast. With that said, the backfield is too crowded for him to go much further beyond his solid 2022 season in which he had 891 rushing yards, 1,093 yards from scrimmage, and five total touchdowns. Can you play him in any given week? Probably. Will he excite you? Definitely not. Can he pop for a huge game? It happened in 2022, but not very often. Mostert saw double-digit carries in nine of 17 games, so he has that going for him. He’s basically roster depth that you can throw in a lineup if you’re ravaged by injuries or bye weeks, and you’re just praying for someone not to goose you.

Jeff Wilson Jr., RB (ADP: 158): Wilson ended the 2022 season with shockingly similar stats to Mostert, even though he spent equal parts of the year on the 49ers and Dolphins. Wilson was acquired by the Dolphins in season and only played eight games for them, averaging 11.5 carries per game in Miami to Mostert’s 11.3. These guys are the Spider-Man pointing meme and playing either of them is essentially trying to lock in 3-5 points while also crossing your fingers for a TD. Their biggest fantasy impact is limiting the ceiling of Achane because they’re going to soak up the biggest shares of rushing work, leaving Achane to make his hay as a receiver turning short targets into big gains and TDs. If you insist on having a piece of Miami’s running game, it’s worth noting PFF graded Mostert a good deal better than Wilson.

Deep Cuts (200 & later)

Braxton Berrios, WR (ADP: N/A): Berrios is a longshot to be impactful, because this offense is pretty clear-cut in terms of who we can expect to produce. But Berrios brings a different element to the receiving corps that could be interesting. Berrios does not have the hyper speed of the other skill players, but he’s lowkey very good at getting open on short routes, and he scored five touchdowns across the 2020 and 2021 seasons with the Jets in limited action. He also earned a 72.6 rushing grade from PFF, so he can be used as a gadget player here and there. Miami’s going to spread things out, and it is very possible for Berrios to earn a WR3 role for this team and be on the field when Hill and Waddle are stressing everyone out. There may be more targets for Berrios than we think, and he could be roster-worthy in deep full-PPR leagues.