MIAMI GARDENS — When the Miami Dolphins selected Jaylen Waddle as the No. 6 pick of the 2021 draft, it was for him to be a longtime No. 1 wide receiver for the franchise.

His rookie season immediately offered the vision he was on that trajectory, but the acquisition of Tyreek Hill the ensuing offseason, had Waddle taking a backseat to Hill the past three seasons.

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After Hill’s gruesome knee injury suffered in last Monday night’s win over the New York Jets for the Dolphins (1-3), beginning with Sunday’s 1 p.m. kickoff with the Carolina Panthers (1-3) at Bank of America Stadium, Waddle will be counted on as a true No. 1 receiver for the first time since.

“I think we’ve looked at him as a Wide Receiver 1,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said. “I think that it’s not necessarily a change from the way we approach it and the way we see it, and I think he’s done a fantastic job, being an elite receiver playing with another elite receiver.

“As far as his game, he’s very, very much ready for this moment as he has seen himself as a 1, and we’ve approached it the same way. So there shouldn’t be, really, an adjustment for Jaylen Waddle, because he himself stands alone.”

For Waddle, the No. 1 receiver is an abstract idea at a position where at least two wideouts are usually on the field together.

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“We never look at it like Receiver 1, or 1A-1B. I think that’s more like a media thing or something that gives something for the media to talk about,” Waddle said this week. “We all go out there, make plays and just try to help our team win. It’s not a Receiver 1, Receiver 2, type of thing. It’s being able to go out there, contribute and help your team get a W.”

Whether the concept of a top receiver is a made-up thing or not, more targets will inevitably go Waddle’s way in Hill’s absence.

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Last time Waddle played without Hill, as a rookie in 2021, he had career highs in targets (140) and receptions (104). In the first year of Waddle and Hill together, Waddle had fewer targets and catches, but leading the NFL with 18.1 yards per catch, he put together a career-high 1,356 receiving yards.

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Waddle’s receiving production dipped in 2023 and again in 2024, that season after signing a three-year, $84.75 million extension. Through four games in 2025, he has 17 catches for 185 yards and two touchdowns.

“My first three years with him, the first time he came to the league, he’s been able to have 1,000-yard years,” said Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who has played with Waddle going back to their college days together at Alabama. “So it’s one of those where we get right back into that. Jaylen understands the offense a lot better than he did the first year Mike came here, so I trust that he’s going to be here, where he needs to be. We’ve built that chemistry from Alabama all the way until now.”

In Waddle’s time with Hill in Miami, they had one game where Waddle was without Hill due to injury. In a December 2023 meeting with the Jets, Waddle stepped up for eight catches, 142 yards and a touchdown.

“I think he’s really motivated to show his skill set,” offensive coordinator Frank Smith said, “and be able to really help us in the different ways at the wide receiver position just do different things now with Tyreek out.”

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Said running back De’Von Achane: “He’s been prepared. … He’s a great receiver. He can do a lot for us like go deep, short. He’s got a lot of attributes.”

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It doesn’t all have to come from Waddle with Hill now done for Miami’s season. New tight end Darren Waller was unlocked for two touchdowns in his Dolphins debut Monday. Second-year slot receiver Malik Washington is capable of creating separation underneath with more defensive attention likely to go Waddle’s way. Others like Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Dee Eskridge and Tahj Washington could see an uptick in chances. Miami also brought back former receiver Cedrick Wilson Jr. this past week, but he won’t be ready against Carolina as he recovers from a knee procedure.

McDaniel could also be forced into leaning more on the run game, as his offense did effectively for 123 yards on 31 attempts against the Jets.

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The Panthers will be first to set the new blueprint on how to defend the Dolphins offense without Hill. Opponents have often played the two-high-safety shell to contain the speed of the combination of Hill and Waddle on the outside. How much does Carolina decide to play that same look when it’s just Waddle? Do they creep in an extra defender in the box to stop the run and force the ball into the air?

Defensively, the Dolphins, while finally forcing three turnovers last time out, must be better in run defense. They get the Panthers without starting running back Chuba Hubbard, out with a calf injury, but backup Rico Dowdle was a 1,000-yard rusher just last season with the Dallas Cowboys.

Carolina will also be without former Dolphins offensive lineman Robert Hunt, who is on injured reserve.

As Tagovailoa and Waddle are an Alabama connection, the Panthers’ quarterback, Bryce Young, is also a product of the Crimson Tide.