Dolphins receiver Waddle juggles the basics as he looks to bounce back in 2025

Miami Herald

3 days ago

Jaylen Waddle was happy during the Miami Dolphins' Tuesday afternoon practice despite the dreary, rainy weather.
In between plays, Waddle and former University of Alabama teammate Tua Tagovailoa were talking it up on the sidelines — laughing and chatting as the air horn blew, ending the day.
During these practices during organized team activities, Waddle can often be found chatting it up with defenders, raising the stakes of practice.
Few passes found their way in Waddle's direction on Tuesday, but he was a top standout performer in last week's practice the media attended.
And he has mastered one of the challenges new position coach Robert Prince is laboring to teach, working with all the receivers on the art of juggling, which is aimed at improving their hand-eye coordination.
'I learned in two days!' Waddle bragged, pointing out he used TikTok as an instructional tool. 'RP [Robert Prince] challenged us to learn, [and] it's actually pretty fun. I'm trying to learn some new techniques.'
He's also trying to refine his game, running better routes and becoming more consistent with his hands.
After a disappointing 2024 season, where the 26-year-old averaged 49.6 yards per game and totaled 744 receiving yards, Waddle's gearing up for 2025 by 'smoothing out' his routes, with the goal of taking his game to another level.
The Dolphins' offense had a shaky season in 2024, averaging 325.4 yards per game. That's a far cry from the 2023 season where Miami delivered the top-ranked offense.
With his $85 million contract extension, which runs through 2028, the hope is that Waddle begins to step up and performs like he's one of the NFL's 15 highest-paid receivers.
'One thing that has been really cool to watch is his understanding of who he is on the team, how much we depend on his playmaking ability, but also how much we depend on how he is as a football player in extremely non-selfish ways,' coach Mike McDaniel said. 'I'm really excited about what 2025 has in store for him, based upon the excitement that he gives me every day attacking this craft.'
In last week's OTA practices, Waddle had two catchers more than 30 yards and was easily a standout player from the practice. This week, on a short pass from Tagovailoa, he made a clean break through a crowded defense and pulled down a reception that was good for 20-plus yards.
As fellow receiver Tyreek Hill's future on the team remains uncertain, due to his ongoing wrist injury, age, and a potential trade he initially requested and then backed off, this could be the year Waddle steps up as the number one receiver.
'I just go out there and do my job, man,' said Waddle, who missed three games because of a knee injury he sustained in early December. 'Whatever they ask me to do, I just go out there and do it, [and] try to do it at a high level.'
In his first season with the Dolphins after becoming the sixth overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Waddle showed promise with 63.4 yards per game and 1,015 receiving yards. He set a rookie record for receiving yards in that season.
In 2022, he had his best season yet, balancing out the Dolphins offense with 1,356 receiving yards, averaging 79.8 per game. He also scored eight touchdowns.
Now, the question remains if his first three seasons were flashes in a pan, and is his 2024 performance the new norm? Or can Waddle work his way back into a starring role for this Dolphins offense?
'[Last season was] definitely not the year that we wanted as a team, definitely a year I didn't want as an individual,' Waddle said. 'But lucky for me, we get to go back [with the] same quarterback, same head coach, [offensive coordinator] and running back. Man, I think the foundation that we set here in OTA is going to really help us.'