Dolphins releasing star receiver Hill in major roster cuts

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — The Dolphins released star receiver Tyreek Hill on Monday, ending the All-Pro's four-year tenure in Miami. Hill, who turns 32 on March 1, is recovering from a season-ending injury suffered in a game against the New York Jets on Sept. 29 that required surgery to repair significant damage to his left knee, including a torn anterior cruciate ligament. It is one of several major roster cuts the Dolphins made on Monday. Miami also cut offensive lineman James Daniels and receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, and will release two-time Pro Bowl pass rusher Bradley Chubb. The Dolphins acquired Hill in a trade with Kansas City ahead of the 2022 season and gave him a $120 million, four-year contract extension that made him the highest-paid player at his position at the time. His contract, which runs through 2026, would have represented around $51 million against Miami's cap. "These past few years have been some of the most meaningful of my life and career," Hill said in an Instagram post Monday afternoon. Hill had consecutive 1,700-yard receiving seasons in his first two years with Miami, including a league-leading 1,799 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2023. The five-time All-Pro entered the 2025 season aiming to regain that elite form after a relatively down year in 2024, when he had 81 catches for 959 yards — his lowest totals in both categories since 2019. He had 21 receptions for 265 yards before he was hurt while making a catch in Miami's Week 4 win against the Jets. Hill was running toward the sideline and planted his left foot, and his knee twisted as he was getting pulled down. He was carted off the field and placed on season-ending injured reserve on Oct. 1. Hill's Dolphins tenure was characterized by tremendous production on the field coupled with numerous rocky moments off the field, including an altercation with police outside of Hard Rock Stadium ahead of the 2024 season opener, and pulling himself from that season's finale and later indicating he wanted to play elsewhere. In an October podcast interview, Hill, who has played 10 NFL seasons, said he was undecided on whether he plans to retire when he's done rehabbing his injury, but on Monday he indicated on social media that he's not done playing yet. "The Cheetah don't slow down. Ever," Hill said in the post. "So to everyone wondering what's next...just wait on it. The Cheetah will be back...Born Again." Bradley Chubb is another star Dolphins player on the move Chubb spent the past three seasons with the Dolphins after being traded to Miami from Denver in 2022. He suffered a gruesome knee injury late in the 2023 season that required surgery to fix a torn anterior cruciate ligament, meniscus and patellar tendon in his right knee and sidelined him all of 2024. Chubb had 11 sacks — the most he had in a season since getting 12 as a rookie in 2018 — in 2023 before the injury. Last season, Chubb's 8 1/2 sacks led the team. He represented a $31 million cap hit for 2026. New general manager Jon Eric Sullivan, who was hired by the Dolphins last month along with head coach Jeff Hafley, was expected to begin making moves to overhaul Miami's roster. "We will move with responsible aggression here," Sullivan said when the Dolphins introduced him on Jan 22. "We will utilize every avenue of player acquisition to bolster this roster." Dolphins still appear undecided on QB Tua Tagovailoa Sullivan still faces the question on whether to move on from 2020 first-round pick Tua Tagovailoa, who was benched by former Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel toward the end of last season because of poor play. Tagovailoa signed a four-year, $212.4 million extension in July 2024, but has since shown a decline in accuracy and mobility. Tagovailoa finished 2025 with 15 interceptions, second most in the NFL and a career high. He is guaranteed $54 million for 2026, and the Dolphins would incur significant hits to the salary cap by releasing him. Cutting him would result in a $99 million dead cap charge. If the move is designated as a post-June 1 release, those charges are split over two years, with $67.4 million allocated to the 2026 cap and $31.8 million in 2027. Sullivan said last week at a fan event that he doesn't know "what the future holds right now." "And I told Tua that," Sullivan said. "We're working through some things. What I can tell you is that we're going to infuse competition into that room — whether Tua is part of the room, whether he's not part of the room." ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl