There is no doubt that it has been an underwhelming season for Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill, which was put on display Sunday when they beat the San Francisco 49ers, 29-17. As Dolphins star Jaylen Waddle was out with an injury, Hill was tasked with taking up most of the work, but a handful of drops highlighted his performance, and he explained the reason for it after the game.

Hill would finish the game with three catches for 29 yards and a touchdown, but the stat line could have looked much differently if several of the missed opportunities were capitalized on. He would cite that he required more “valuable reps” with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa according to ESPN.

“I feel like, at the end of the day, I need those valuable reps with Tua,” Hill said. “I completely blame myself for not getting my head around and not seeing the ball because, if I see a ball, we're talking cross-court, 70-yard touchdown. But those Wednesday reps are definitely showing. As a leader, I've just got to be able to bite the bullet sometime and practice and get those valuable reps with QB1 because, if we're able to stay on the field on third down, who knows what could happen.”

There were a few plays that were missed opportunities in the endzone where Tagovailoa threw a perfect pass, but Hill would cite one as being an exceptional play from the defender and the other due to a lack of “valuable reps.”

Dolphins' Tyreek Hill and Tua Tagovailoa agree on needing more reps

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) runs with the ball after a catch against the San Francisco 49ers during first half at Hard Rock Stadium.
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Tagovailoa would throw for 215 yards to go along with one touchdown, which was his 100th score with the franchise.

“On the deep ball, it was tipped by the defensive back, and on the other one, it's just, again, missing those valuable reps with the quarterback,” Hill said. “One thing I learned from Coach Reid whenever I was in Kansas City…is you can't just show up on Sunday. You've got to be able to prepare yourself Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, even Saturday. Then when it's Sunday, it's easy. Once again, us missing those valuable reps because when it's live speed, everything's moving so fast.”

The Dolphins' offense has been a far cry from what it was last season as Hill was on the cusp of catching almost 2,000 yards and Tagovailoa leading the league in passing yards.

“If he told you that, then that's what we need more of. We need reps,” Tagovailoa said. “That's the secret sauce to me being able to connect with all these guys. … If we miss a throw, if we're off on a throw in the team practice or in a routes on-air rep, we'll get together in whatever time we have, whether it's after or during, while the defense is on, and we'll get those reps made up. Telling him what I see and then him also telling me how he feels with running it.”

Miami's playoff chances are alive, but the first step is to win out which the journey continues Sunday as they face the Cleveland Browns and then after against the New York Jets.