Waddle doubtful, Hill questionable. And Armstead optimistic. And personnel notes

The Dolphins’ situation at wide receiver, already precarious because of a knee injury to Jaylen Waddle, grew a bit more concerning on Friday when Tyreek Hill received a questionable designation for Sunday’s game against visiting San Francisco on Sunday (4:25 p.m., CBS).

Hill was limited in practice, with the Dolphins citing personal reasons and a wrist injury.

With Waddle and Dee Eskridge (knee) both listed as doubtful, the Dolphins have only two healthy receivers on the 53-man roster for Sunday’s game: Malik Washington and River Cracraft. They will need to elevate one or two of their three practice squad receivers: Isaiah McKenzie, Dee Eskridge or Tarik Black.

Hill said Thursday that he would play through the wrist injury the remainder of the season, even though the Dolphins would be eliminated from playoff contention with a loss on Sunday. But after practicing fully on Thursday, Hill was limited in his practice involvement on Friday. He has consistently played through the injury this season, which has bothered him for months, and said he is leaning against postseason surgery.

Meanwhile, Miami listed left tackle Terron Armstead (knee) and right tackle Kendall Lamm (back) as questionable, but Armstead said Friday that he’s optimistic he will play Sunday after missing the Texans game.

“It has been a challenge trying to navigate everything and be prepared and keep my technique,” Armstead said after being a limited participant in Friday’s practice.

He said he left the Jets game two weeks ago, after five offensive snaps, because “it was to the point where it was loss of function. It was not a pain thing. It was shutting down on me. I couldn’t be in there and put anyone else in harm’s way.”

Lamm was a full participant in Friday’s practice, which typically bodes well.

McDaniel said both Armstead and Lamm made it through Friday’s practice OK and “now you’re taking it up to game time and make sure ducks are in a row for both, feeling what it takes to play.”

Also, the Dolphins listed edge players Bradley Chubb and Cam Goode as questionable for Sunday.

The Dolphins have until Christmas to activate both players in order for them to be eligible to play this season. Goode was a full participant in practice this week. Chubb was limited all week. “During the process, we felt Cam was a little ahead,” McDaniel said Friday. “Optimistic we will see one or both when they’re ready.”

Though Tua Tagovailoa was a limited practice participant on Wednesday and Thursday due to a hip injury, he does not have an injury designation for Sunday’s game and will play.

Washington ready

Washington, who led the Dolphins in receiving yards with 52 against Houston, has improved considerably since August and figures to play the majority of offensive snaps against San Francisco after logging between 23 and 40 offensive snaps in each of the Dolphins’ past five games and at least 14 snaps in each of Miami’s last 11 games.

Washington -- who has 15 receptions for 106 yards and four rushes for 46 yards -- hadn’t played more than 50 percent of the offensive snaps in any game before the Houston game, when he replaced the injured Waddle and logged 40 snaps (59 percent).

This week “will be huge for me and my growth in my rookie year,” he said. “It’s like any week; you have to prepare to be that starter.”

Where specifically has he improved the most since August?

“Being able to process what’s going on, the full field, getting to understand what defenses are throwing at us, what our offensive plan is, and where I fit in the offensive plan,” he said. “The growth in the time I’ve been here is huge.”

Washington, selected in the fifth round in April’s draft out after a 110-reception season at Virginia, was curious to see if his aptitude for breaking tackles in college would translate to the NFL. It seemingly has.

“In college, breaking tackles was my thing,” he said Friday. “In the NFL, you know everyone is bigger, faster, stronger. You kind of want to know, am I going to be able to break those same tackles when I get to the NFL? I still have a lot of growth” in that area.

Where receivers coach Wes Welker has helped him the most is teaching “me, ‘if you see this, expect this.’”

That, he said, has helped me “process the game a little bit and make it a little bit slower when I’m out there.”

Washington also has performed well as a returner; he’s averaging 7.1 yards on 14 punt returns and 27.6 yards on 10 kickoff returns.

▪ The 49ers ruled out Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams and running back Isaac Guerendo. Pro Bowl defensive end Nick Bosa is questionable.

Deep pass numbers

Here’s one way to quantify the stunning reduction in big plays from the Dolphins’ passing offense:

On passes thrown at least 20 air yards this season, Tua Tagovailoa has completed 9 of 22 (40.9 percent) for 364 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

That equates to an 80.7 passer rating, which ranks 24th among quarterbacks who have attempted at least 20 such throws.

Last season, Tagovailoa attempted a lot more of those throws and completed a higher percentage: He had a 94.6 passer rating on 20-plus-yard air throws and completed 33 of 68 (48.5 percent), with 11 TDs and 7 interceptions.

▪ Running back Raheem Mostert admitted this week that he’s down about his reduced role. But he’s handling it professionally.

Mostert has just 16 carries in the last five games and 71 for the season, compared with 209 last season. He’s averaging 3.4 yards per carry, compared to 4.8 last season. And his three touchdown receptions are well below last season’s 21.

“My spirits are down, but at the same time, I’m healthy and feeling good,” he said. “I’ve got to go out there and protect myself.

“At some point, you do start trying to creep up in your head that you should be out there, you should be doing this, but I don’t let it happen. I try to be a team player and leader on this team and be there mentally. Who knows what the future holds? I’m not worrying about that. I’m worried about beating the 49ers.”

▪ Special teams coordinator Danny Crossman said Jason Sanders’ two missed extra points over the past two games were a result of “the timing” being “a little bit off. Sanders said “I felt quick in my operation on both.”

Sanders said “the good thing is the two I missed, I look up and I knew they wouldn’t go in or there was a small chance they would go in.”

Why is that good? Because he said when he knows that instantly, it’s easier to pinpoint the cause of the miss.