Tua Tagovailoa, Tyreek Hill link up for 51-yard bomb on first play together as Dolphins

It was only the preseason, but the Tua Tagovailoa-Tyreek Hill connection debuted with a bang Saturday for the Miami Dolphins.

On their very first snap with Tagovailoa and Hill on the field together, the Dolphins dialed up a play-action bomb and Tagovailoa connected with his new star wide receiver for a 51-yard completion at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.

The Philadelphia Eagles put two defenders on Hill and it still didn’t matter: The 28-year-old receiver outran them both and made a falling catch on the deep throw by Tagovailoa.

The quarterback immediately followed the deep ball by throwing an out route to Hill, who picked up 13 more yards. Tagovailoa finished the opening drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver River Cracraft.

It was the first — and only — action for Tagovailoa and Hill together in the preseason. Tagovailoa also played in the Dolphins’ second preseason game last Saturday, but coach Mike McDaniel decided at the last minute to hold out Hill after originally keeping him off Miami’s list of players not expected to play.

It made Saturday into the highly anticipated debut for Hill as a Dolphin.

Miami traded for Hill back in March, spending five picks, including a first-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, to give Tagovailoa a true star wideout to throw to. As part of the trade, the Dolphins signed Hill to a four-year, $120 million extension, making him the highest paid wide receiver in the NFL.

His contract — and the massive price it cost Miami to get him — is because of plays like the one he made right away Saturday.

Last year, Tagovailoa’s 30 pass attempts traveling 20 yards or more were only the 28th most in the NFL, placing him right near the bottom among starters. Questions about arm strength dogged the former first-round pick and the Dolphins hoped the addition of Hill — and hire of McDaniel — would unlock Tagovailoa as a more dangerous passer.

This year, the 24-year-old is out of excuses and the final weekend of the preseason was a promising start to the year.

Hill checked out after one drive, but Tagovailoa stayed in for two more, leading three straight scoring drives to start the game, and going 6 of 7 for 121 yards and a touchdown. Last week, Tagovailoa played two drives and went 6 of 8 for 58 yards.

Dolphins hold out Howard, Armstead

Although Hill finally suited up, Miami still held out five other starters for the preseason finale, including Xavien Howard.

The star cornerback is one of four starters, according to the team’s current depth chart, not to play at any point in the preseason. Those other three are fullback Alec Ingold, wide receiver Jaylen Waddle and tackle Terron Armtead.

Both Ingold and Waddle have some injury concerns, as Ingold is less than a year removed from surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament and Waddle hasn’t practiced in more than two weeks because of an undisclosed injury. With Howard and Armstead, the Dolphins are just exercising caution.

Armstead, 31, signed a five-year, $75 million deal with Miami in March and is locked in as the Dolphins’ starting left tackle. Howard, 28, is the best player on Miami’s defense and his position is particularly thin after preseason injuries to fellow cornerbacks Byron Jones, Trill Williams and Mackensie Alexander.

Running back Chase Edmonds, who’s listed as one of two starters in the backfield, also did not play Saturday, although he suited up against the Las Vegas Raiders last weekend.

In total, the Dolphins listed eight players as “not expected to play” this weekend. The other four were tight end Tanner Conner, defensive back Keion Crossen, and linebackers Andrew Van Ginkel, Calvin Munson and Brennan Scarlett.