Tyreek Hill Contract Drama a Blessing in Disguise, Mike McDaniel Admits

A recent offseason of uncertainty surrounding star wide receiver Tyreek Hill‘s future might help the Miami Dolphins going forward without him, amid his knee dislocation.

Hill sustained the injury

on Monday night against the New York Jets, and he is likely to miss the rest of the season. The Dolphins will need to adjust to not having the five-time first-team All-Pro as the No. 1 wideout, but that was the reality many times in practices before the season when he didn’t participate. He missed organized team activities, mini camp, and a significant amount of training camp.

“Adversity is an opportunity,” Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters after the 27-21 win over the Jets. “I think that that time where we did have to really go at a lot of work without him on the field, I was optimistic about the energy and kind of like the leaders on the offense because they started to develop their own personality. Tyreek brings a lot of juice and energy and competitive spirit to an offense and to our team when he’s on the field.”

“I thought where in years past, when he would be out for a day or two or something would come up, we didn’t have the same competitive spirit,” McDaniel said. “I thought this offseason, we were able to develop that during joint practices and doing all that. That’s productive. It should be helpful for the guys so they’re not going into uncharted territory.”

Dolphins Have Quality Receivers After Tyreek Hill

Hill led the Dolphins receivers with 15 catches for 198 yards and a touchdown through three games. After Hill, running back De’Von Achane has been quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s second-favorite target with 141 yards and two touchdowns on 18 receptions.

Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle came into Week 4 as third on the team with 14 receptions for 137 yards and two touchdowns. Fellow wideout Malik Washington had six catches for 34 yards through three games, and tight end Tanner Conner has the best stats for his position group on the team with three receptions for 33 yards ahead of Monday’s game.

“And certainly your team has to continue to develop and get better at everything they do any time you lose a good player on your team,” McDaniel said. “But regardless if you don’t lose anyone, it’s the same setup. You have to continue to get better at your football, because if you’re not, the other half of the league is, and it’s about stacking wins and trying to get in the win column as much as possible as your team does develop.”

Miami Could Look For an Additional Receiver

Miami could find a free agent wide receiver in the meantime or make a trade ahead of the November trade deadline. Notable available free agents include Nelson Agholor and Tyler Boyd. Either way, McDaniel is clear that the current receivers on the roster will need to step up without Hill.

“I guess it’ll take what the players were doing after he left. It’s football. It’s 100% injury rate,” McDaniel said. Man, he’s great, valuable and a very important player to us, but every team has the same situation going on, different cadence. Everybody has injuries no one cares about.”

Vikings’ Brian O’Neill avoids surgery after Week 4 MCL sprain

The Minnesota Vikings were dealt another big blow after it was confirmed that right tackle Brian O’Neill suffered an MCL injury.

The Minnesota Vikings fell short in their comeback bid against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, losing the NFL's inaugural game in Dublin, Ireland, 24-21, at Croke Park.

The Vikings fell to 2-2, while the Steelers improved to 3-1.

The defeat was extra costly for Minnesota as right tackle Brian O'Neill suffered an MCL sprain in the first quarter. It's a big blow to the Vikings' offense, which is already struggling early in the campaign. Quarterback JJ McCarthy has missed their last two games due to an ankle sprain.

While O'Neill is expected to miss some time, NFL insider Ian Rapoport reported that the 30-year-old veteran doesn't need knee surgery.

“The MRI has confirmed that #Vikings RT Brian O’Neill sprained his MCL on Sunday, taking him off the field. He’s week-to-week, but no surgery is required. Coach Kevin O’Connell had indicated this was the case,” posted Rapoport on X.

O’Neill suffered the injury while blocking on a field goal attempt.

The two-time Pro Bowler had been a durable player for the Vikings since being drafted as the 62nd overall pick in 2018. He started all 17 games last season, helping Minnesota to a 14-3 record.

The medical bills have been piling up for the Vikings recently. Aside from O'Neill and McCarthy, also sidelined are center Ryan Kelly due to a concussion and guard Donovan Jackson, who is recovering from wrist surgery.

For what it's worth, it looks like McCarthy could return sooner rather than later. O'Connell stressed that they will not rush the 22-year-old signal-caller, who missed his rookie season due to a torn MCL, until he gets enough practice.

“Those physical reps? That’s what the Vikings hope for JJ McCarthy this week. He told me his ankle is feeling better. However, this staff will not let him play until he is at 101%,” said NFL reporter Jamie Erdahl during the game between the Vikings and the Steelers, as quoted by Heavy's Josh Buckhalter.

Minnesota will face the Cleveland Browns in Week 5.

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