Dolphins’ Tyreek Hill Suffers ACL Tear; WR’s 2026 Availability Uncertain

It was confirmed after last night’s game that Tyreek Hill suffered a dislocated knee on the play which resulted in him carted off the field. Further testing took place overnight while he was hospitalized.

Hill’s injuries consist of more than the dislocated knee. Multiple ligaments were also torn, including his ACL, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. Hill remains in hospital and is scheduled to undergo surgery later today. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network adds further procedures could prove to be necessary given the extent of the damage.

Especially if multiple surgeries wind up taking place, Hill’s recovery timeline will be longer than the one associated with a typical ACL tear. At this point, the All-Pro’s availability for the 2026 season is unclear. At a minimum, Hill will be sidelined for the remainder of the current campaign. As a result, Monday’s game may end up representing his final one as a Dolphin.

Hill remains under contract through 2026, but he is owed a $29.9MM base salary which is not guaranteed for that season. With a scheduled cap hit of $51.9MM, an adjustment of some kind to his contract was widely expected in the event he remained with Miami. In the case of a trade, the 31-year-old would have been considered a rental given the ability of an acquiring team to move on after the season. The Dolphins may have been able to generate a Day 2 pick in return for Hill had a trade taken place in the next few weeks, but that is obviously a moot point now.

Last night’s win allowed Miami to improve to 1-3 on the season. The team’s offense enjoyed a second straight strong showing on the ground, but the Dolphins recorded just 177 passing yards against the Jets. Miami’s ability to produce through the air will be tested through the remainder of the campaign with Hill (who led the NFL in receiving yards in 2023) unavailable. Jaylen Waddle will be counted on to serve as a focal point in that regard, with a mix of veterans (Nick Westbrook-IkhineD’Wayne Eskridge) and 2024 draftees (Malik WashingtonTahj Washington) in place as depth options at the receiver position.

Reaching the playoffs can be considered an unlikely feat at this point given the Dolphins’ record, but losing Hill will make the task of qualifying for the postseason more challenging. Attention will turn to the progress of his recovery and, later, the question of how Miami will handle his future.

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