After a tumultuous week, Miami Dolphins star wide receiver Tyreek Hill is expected to play against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
Hill was a surprise addition to the Dolphins’ injury report Friday, deemed questionable with both his nagging wrist injury and an undisclosed personal matter.
But according to an ESPN report late Saturday night, Hill is expected to be available for the 4:25 p.m. kickoff at Hard Rock Stadium.
The report indicated it was the wrist injury that had Hill’s status in question more than the personal matter. After a full practice on Thursday, Hill was listed as a limited participant at Friday drills before the questionable designation was released.
Hill should be present to lead a Dolphins’ receiving corps that will likely be without Jaylen Waddle and Dee Eskridge, who are both doubtful with knee injuries.
Behind Hill, Miami will have rookie Malik Washington and veteran River Cracraft, while elevating third-year wide receiver Erik Ezukanma from the practice squad Saturday.
Earlier this week, Hill made headlines for a viral, cryptic social media post, saying, “It’s time for me to go coach.” Often known to playfully mislead, it brought into question what his intentions were. He said it was about eventually wanting to get into football coaching, while many took it as him meaning he was on the verge of departing from the team.
After Hill finished with an NFL-leading 1,799 receiving yards last season, Hill is in jeopardy of missing the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career, with just 805 receiving yards in 14 games. Last Sunday in Houston, quarterback Tua Tagovailao threw more interceptions (three) than completions (two) targeting the star speedster.
Playoff scenarios
The Dolphins are facing elimination against the 49ers on Sunday. A loss means they can no longer catch other teams in the AFC wild card race.
The league’s two Saturday games didn’t offer help Miami could use if it wins out over its final three games.
The Baltimore Ravens win over the Pittsburgh Steelers took out the potential path of having the Ravens lose out over their last three.
It also didn’t help that the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Houston Texans, as it would be best for Miami if the Chiefs have something to play for in their regular season finale against the Denver Broncos. Kansas City is two games up on the Buffalo Bills for the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye. If the Chiefs win their next game on Christmas Day at the Steelers or if the Bills lose one of their next two, Kansas City clinches that top spot in the AFC before Week 18.
The Dolphins must win out and have two of these three scenarios play out to make the postseason:
*Indianapolis Colts lose one of their last three (vs. Titans, at Giants, vs. Jaguars);
*Broncos lose last two (at Bengals, vs. Chiefs);
*Los Angeles Chargers lose last two (at Patriots, at Raiders).