Dolphins’ Mostert, Armstead, Shell have injuries to monitor; Tua, Tyreek Hill finish 2022 among league leaders

Mike McDaniel might have summed up the Miami Dolphins’ injury concerns heading into their wild-card playoff game against the Buffalo Bills best with a reference to a phrase rapper Drake popularized more than a decade ago.

“It’s just YOLO (You Only Live Once). That’s what we’re doing these days,” the Dolphins’ coach said Monday, about 24 hours after his team clinched the AFC’s No. 7 seed with an 11-6 win last Sunday over the New York Jets at Hard Rock Stadium.

Aside from the quarterback questions that will dominate the week’s storylines, Miami has several more injuries to monitor before traveling to western New York for a postseason bout with the AFC East-champion and second-seeded Bills.

McDaniel said running back Raheem Mostert had a “significant break” in his injured thumb that caused him to leave the win over the Jets after accumulating 71 yards on 11 carries.

“It’s a serious injury,” McDaniel said. “It’s hard to know if he’ll be able to play this week. I never put anything past Raheem Mostert.”

There’s more uncertainty with Miami’s two tackles. On the left side, Pro Bowler Terron Armstead has missed the past two games with toe, pectoral, knee and hip injuries. At right tackle, Brandon Shell left Sunday’s game with knee and ankle ailments. That’s a total of six body parts for two offensive tackles.

“I don’t know those statuses,” said McDaniel, who had Greg Little at left tackle and slid right guard Robert Hunt out to right tackle for the end of the game with Shell out. “Both of those guys have exceeded expectations, actually, this year with regards to their timelines. There’ll be more of that late-week fun.”

Star receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle suffered ankle injuries against the Jets. Hill returned to action, but Waddle went down late, on one of the final plays before Jason Sanders’ winning 50-yard field goal.

McDaniel said he thinks — but doesn’t know if — Waddle would have been able to return had the ankle injury not occurred in the final minutes. The wideout will be receiving treatment, and McDaniel said he’d be “very surprised” if he wasn’t able to play at Buffalo this Sunday.

League leaders

Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa may have missed his past two starts and four starts overall, but he held on to his NFL lead in quarterback rating as the 2022 regular season concluded Sunday.

Tagovailoa finished with a 105.5 passer rating, edging Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (105.2).

Tagovailoa, whose status is unclear for Sunday’s 1 p.m. wild-card playoff game at the Buffalo Bills, threw 25 touchdowns and eight interceptions in his third NFL season. He completed 64.8 percent of his passes in throwing for 3,548 yards. His 8.9 yards per attempt also led the league. In more advanced metrics, he had the top completion percentage on throws of 15-plus yards through the air, successful on 56.1 percent of such passes.

Tagovailoa was not an initial Pro Bowl selection in 2022, but he is a first alternate behind fellow AFC quarterbacks in Mahomes, the Bills’ Josh Allen and Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals.

He did it with two wide receivers finishing in the top seven of the league in receiving yards. Hill, with 1,710 yards, was second to the Minnesota Vikings’ Justin Jefferson (1,809). His 119 receptions were also second to Jefferson (128).

Hill earned his seventh Pro Bowl in seven professional seasons, his previous six all with the Chiefs. He set career highs in receptions and receiving yards in his first season in Miami.

Waddle, the second-year standout receiver, just missed a first Pro Bowl selection, although he is a first alternate, but he finished seventh in the league with 1,356 yards. His 18.1 yards per catch led the NFL.

The Hill-Waddle duo (3,066 yards) became the fourth pair of teammates to combine for 3,000 receiving yards in a season, joining the Detroit Lions’ Herman Moore and Brett Berriman (3,174 in 1995), St. Louis Rams’ Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce (3,106 in 2000) and Denver Broncos’ Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders (3,023 in 2014).

Hill set a Dolphins record with his 1,710 yards, besting Mark Clayton’s 1984 mark of 1,389, and Waddle finished just below Clayton.

Miami defensive tackle Christian Wilkins finished the season with 98 tackles, most by any NFL defensive lineman since 1994. It also topped Jeff Cross’ franchise record for tackles by a defensive lineman (93 in 1993). Linebackers Elandon Roberts (107) and Jerome Baker (100) each finished with triple-digit tackle totals.

Mostert split time in the backfield with Jeff Wilson Jr. in the second half of the season and Chase Edmonds in the first half of the year, but his 891 rushing yards were still good for 20th in the NFL. His 4.9 yards per carry ranked in a tie for 11th in the league with just six running backs — plus four quarterbacks — finishing with a better clip.

Concluding the regular season 9-8, the Dolphins completed a third consecutive regular season with a winning record. The last time the franchise had such a stretch was from 2001 to 2003.

The Dolphins announced their 2022 team award winners Monday. Hill was named the Dan Marino Most Valuable Player, as voted by South Florida media. Tagovailoa won the Don Shula Leadership Award, decided by the players. Fullback Alec Ingold earned the Ed Block Courage Award, selected by the athletic training staff for professionalism, strength and dedication. Defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah won the Nat Moore Community Service Award.

Browns interest in Flores?

Could former Dolphins coach Brian Flores finally end up united with quarterback Deshaun Watson?

The Cleveland Browns have requested permission to interview Flores, currently linebackers coach with the Pittsburgh Steelers, for their defensive coordinator opening, according to multiple reports, including ESPN and NFL Network.

Flores, while leading Miami, famously pursued Watson while the quarterback was suspended as a member of the Houston Texans for sexual misconduct and sexual assault allegations from several female massage therapists.

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