Road to WR1: Tyreek Hill

With his second top-three fantasy finish in as many years with Miami, Tyreek Hill is still firmly at the top of the wide receiver rankings entering his ninth year in the league.

After posting a career-high 1,710 receiving yards in his first season with Miami in 2022, Hill topped that total in 2023 with 1,799 yards despite playing in one less game. His new career record was enough for seventh all-time in a single season in NFL history. In both 2022 and 2023, Hill recorded 119 receptions while notching one additional target last season.

With most of the Dolphins' offense returning in 2024, Hill will see one minor internal change with Odell Beckham Jr. signing with the team in the offseason. Beckham still carries star power and name value but has not recorded a meaningful fantasy-relevant season since 2019, making him a minimal threat to Hill's role in the offense.

On the heels of his two best statistical seasons in Miami, Hill's short-term fantasy outlook was given positive reinforcement with Tua Tagovailoa inking a lucrative contract extension in July. However, his best fantasy season and lone WR1 finish was back in 2018 as a member of the Kansas City Chiefs.

How Tyreek Hill can finish as the fantasy WR1 in 2024

With Miami locking down Tua Tagovailoa for the foreseeable future, the ceiling of Hill's fantasy value remains sky-high with the Hawaiian gunslinger but his floor is also tentatively tied to the quarterback. Tagovailoa is coming off a career year in which he led the league with 4,624 passing yards but it was his first time in four seasons not missing a single game due to injury.

When he is on the field, Tagovailoa's explosive approach in Mike McDaniel's offense has led to astonishing results for Hill but the 26-year-old is seemingly walking on eggshells nearly every moment of his career. In the last seven years, dating back to his freshman season at Alabama, Tagovailoa has played just two full seasons with all others being cut short to injury.

Should Tagovailoa go down, Hill was still productive in 2022 with Teddy Bridgewater under center but the entire offensive production takes a downgrade. Hill would likely remain in WR1 territory should 2024 backup Mike White see extended playing time but his overall WR1 aspirations would likely be thrown out the window. For Hill to be the best receiver in fantasy football in any format, Tagovailoa needs to be on the field.

Age presents a potential concern for a player reliant on speed and athleticism as much as Hill but without any sign of him slowing down, there is no reason to doubt the 30-year-old until he provides one. Hill missed one game to injury in 2023 but overall has not been absent for an extended period since sitting out four games in 2019.

As long as both Hill and Tagovailoa remain on the field, managers can expect Hill's yard total to remain on par with his two previous seasons in Miami. Hill's 13 touchdowns in 2023 should not be expected to sustain with it being just his third season with double-digit touchdowns but his league-leading 15 red zone targets are more than encouraging.

With a similar workload expected to come in 2024 and Tagovailoa still yet to reach his athletic prime, Hill is still a unanimous first-round pick in redraft leagues and a leading candidate to end the year as the overall WR1.