After having an All-Pro season in his first year with the Miami Dolphins, wide receiver Tyreek Hill is setting his eyes on an NFL record.
In Miami's final mandatory minicamp practice, Hill said it's one of his goals to have 2,000-plus receiving yards this season. If he does reach his goal, Hill would break Hall of Famer and former Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson's 1,964 receiving yards record set in 2012, a milestone Hill thinks he can pass in a 17-game season.
"Oh yeah, for sure," Hill said, via the team transcript. "I think the added game gives me quite the advantage, so yeah."
Last season, Hill set a career high in receptions (119) and receiving yards (1,710) while catching passes from quarterbacks Tua Tagovailoa, Teddy Bridgewater and Skylar Thompson. Both of those now stand as single-season records for the Dolphins, passing Jarvis Landry's 2017 reception mark and Mark Clayton's receiving yards total from 1984.
Going into 2023, the seven-time Pro Bowl wide receiver believes having the "most accurate quarterback" in Tagovailoa and head coach Mike McDaniel's play-calling makes breaking the NFL record possible.
"For me, not getting injured, coming in each and every day wanting to get better, wanting to be coached. And I feel like I've got the right tools around me," Hill said. "I've got obviously the most accurate quarterback in the NFL, I've got one of the best head coaches in the NFL and also my position coach is a monster also. So just having those three things and me just keeping the same mindset each and every day that I want to get better and I want to break the record and I do want to break the record. So I feel like this is one of those years that I can achieve it."
To surpass Johnson's receiving yards record, Hill will likely have to play in all 17 games and hope Tagovailoa can stay on the field. Tagovailoa, who is entering his fourth NFL season, has yet to play a full campaign and suffered two concussions during the 2022 season, which ended his campaign prematurely. In March, Miami decided to pick up the QB's fifth-year option. This offseason, Tagovailoa has been putting in the effort to avoid injury, learning jiu-jitsu techniques to improve his ability to avoid injury when falling.
With Tagovailoa working hard this offseason, Hill hopes Miami's offensive unit can get together before training camp begins in July.
"I'm really hoping that Tua wants to go back to Hawaii because that way I can sneak a vacation in with the family and also get some work in," Hill said.
