The Miami Dolphins took three wide receivers in the 2026 NFL Draft, and Louisville's Chris Bell entered the league with the biggest upside after catching 151 passes for 2,166 yards and 12 touchdowns in 47 games for the Cardinals.
However, Bell suffered a season-ending torn ACL last year that dropped him from first or second-round prospect to a third-round pick. As he recovered this offseason, he started on NFI and eventually returned to action for the team's season opener against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Through five games, he's caught five passes for 92 yards, but he's catchless the lass two weeks, which led to reporters asking quarterback Malik Willis what advice he had for the rookie wideout this year.
"I think he's just continuing to grow, bro,"
Willis said.. "I mean, he's a rookie. He's just trying to figure it out. Obviously, I have issues and maybe I've missed him a couple of times. Who knows? I got to go back and watch again. But at the same time, I just tell him, don't lose any confidence. Just like if I go out there and turn the ball over, it's like, don't lose any confidence, just continue to play. Obviously, learn from that mistake and try to not make that same mistake. And then we go out there and we play ball. Like he obviously has put some good stuff on tape as well. And it would be wrong to try to only focus on the negatives and mitigate his success as well. So I mean, I wouldn't say it as 'No, you just need to do better.'
"Like no, just continue to do what you're doing. Focus on what the details are in your route and the concept that we're trying to run and make sure that you're doing everything that you can. And it's me continuing to communicate what I'm looking for out of him. I think I got to do a better job of that."
Bell has a ton of potential, and there have been a few times where he's been open and Willis hasn't looked his way. If they can get on the same page and continue to improve together, they could help turn this offense around. Still, there's a long way to go for both of them.
This article originally appeared on Dolphins Wire: Dolphins QB Malik Willis explains advice he's giving to rookie WR
