Here’s the latest installment of our Miami Dolphins Q&A, where South Florida Sun Sentinel writers David Furones and Omar Kelly answer questions from readers.

Q: Without [Brian] Flores being part of the defensive play-calling, what can we assume or expect with how well Josh Boyer will be now that this is his defense moving forward? — Dan Giunta on Twitter

A: Much like how it’s a “prove-it” year for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa because he has everything he should need to succeed heading into his third season, this could also be viewed as the season when the pressure is on Josh Boyer as defensive coordinator.

This will be the true test for him — with defensive personnel that offers him all the tools he needs — to show he can do it without leaning on ex-Dolphins coach Brian Flores, whom he’s had a longstanding relationship with going back to their decade-plus together as assistants with the New England Patriots.

As new coach Mike McDaniel reshaped the Dolphins’ offensive staff, he retained Boyer in his same defensive coordinator role as last season, along with other defensive assistants in linebackers coach Anthony Campanile and defensive line coach Austin Clark.

With all 11 starters and several rotational pieces on defense returning, if the Dolphins defense takes a step back in 2022, the blame will land on Boyer, who no longer has Flores with him or former defensive backs coach Gerald Alexander. Alexander, according to Sun Sentinel sources, took on added responsibilities in leading the defense in the second half of last season as the unit turned the team’s fortunes around for eight wins in the last nine games following a seven-game losing streak.

Early on upon being named head coach, McDaniel pursued former Denver Broncos coach Vic Fangio for the defensive coordinator role, as the Sun Sentinel reported, but a deal couldn’t be reached. With Boyer retained, maintaining as much continuity as possible on a successful defense became the evident goal.

With the defense now nearly entirely his, Boyer already has the blueprint of what makes it work.

Bring exotic blitzes. Let cornerbacks Xavien Howard, Byron Jones and Nik Needham play man coverage. Allow safeties Jevon Holland and Brandon Jones to be versatile. Utilize multiple defensive fronts with the versatility that many in the front seven possess. And the addition of Melvin Ingram as another pass rusher helps.

Boyer, speaking recently with media at team facilities, said “a lot” of his time is consumed with the internal debate of how much to keep the same with the defense and what he’ll tinker with.

“Even the things that we do and we’ve done consistently, you’re always trying to tweak or do it better,” Boyer said. “There’s always variables that go into that: What teams are doing to you and what you’re looking to do to teams.”

One aspect that McDaniel, offensively, can facilitate for Boyer and the defense is to take some of the pressure off by installing an effective run game in Miami. The better the Dolphins can run the football under McDaniel, who led a consistent rushing attack for years in San Francisco, the more Miami can win the time of possession battle, keeping the defense fresh and not having to get run back out onto the field time and time again following three-and-outs from the offense.

Have a question?

Email David Furones, or tag @OmarKelly or @DavidFurones_ on Twitter.

Previously answered:

Where will Dolphins add another veteran free agent?

Is Christian Wilkins next for multi-year extension?

What could Dolphins’ draft strategy be?

How should Dolphins fill out O-line around Armstead?

Could AFC’s young guns at QB affect Dolphins’ commitment to Tua?

Why not throw downfield to Waddle more?

What do Dolphins think of practice squad rookie RB Gerrid Doaks?

Can Tua still be a top-10 quarterback?

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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Dwayne Haskins died with alcohol and ketamine in his system and had been out at a South Florida club and drank “heavily,” records from the Broward County Medical Examiner’s Office released Monday say.

Haskins, 24, died April 9 after he was hit by two drivers on Interstate 595 near the Fort Lauderdale airport, first by a dump truck driver and then by the driver of a Subaru Outback, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Haskins died from multiple blunt-force injuries, and his manner of death was an accident, the report says.

The Medical Examiner’s Office report says Haskins had been training in South Florida with his teammates and they all went to dinner. Then Haskins and a relative went to a club, possibly in Miami, where they “drank heavily” and separated after a fight.

Haskins’ alcohol levels were at 0.20 and 0.24, the toxicology report found from two separate samples. A driver is considered to be driving under the influence in Florida if the blood-alcohol content is at 0.08 or more.

The urine sample also came back positive for ketamine and norketamine, which is found in the body after ketamine is metabolized. Ketamine is “a dissociative anesthetic,” according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, that can be used as a sedative and pain reliever and may also cause hallucinations.

The report does not say how much of the drugs were detected in the sample. It notes that Haskins’ medical history was unknown, but he did not take daily medications.

Drivers reported seeing Haskins “waving cars down” while in the shoulder on the westbound side of the interstate, the report says.

He had run out of gas, pulled over to the side of the highway and got out in search of fuel about 6:15 a.m., the Medical Examiner’s report says. The 911 calls started pouring in about 6:33 a.m.

One woman who saw Haskins waving cars down told investigators she saw a man wearing all black, standing on the right shoulder of the road waving at cars. By the time she pulled over, parked and went to help him, he had already been hit, the report says.

Troopers found the abandoned car on the side of the highway with a woman inside. The report does not say what Haskins relationship to the woman who was waiting inside the car was.

Haskin’s wife, Kalabrya, told a 911 operator that her husband told her he was “stuck on the side of the highway” and would call her back once he got gas, according to the call released by FHP in April. But he never did.

“I don’t want you to panic, but I’m going to be honest with you,” the 911 operator said. “We do have an incident on the highway, but I can’t confirm if that’s your husband or not.”

Both drivers stopped and no criminal charges are expected to be filed in his death. Fire rescue crews pronounced Haskins dead at the scene at 6:48 a.m.

Staff writers David Fleshler and Chris Perkins contributed to this report.

This is a developing story, so check back for updates. Click here to have breaking news alerts sent directly to your inbox.

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A push to legalize sports betting in Minnesota failed to pass the Legislature before its regular session ended late Sunday night, despite bipartisan support in both the House and Senate.

Bills in both chambers would have allowed the state’s tribal casinos to run in-person and mobile sports betting for people 21 and older in Minnesota and set priorities for the modest state tax revenues the gambling would generate. But a disagreement over whether to allow two Twin Cities-area horse racing tracks to also host betting ultimately derailed the push.

The Senate’s version of the bill would have allowed Canterbury Park in Shakopee and Running Aces in Columbus to get in on sports betting. But the Minnesota Indian Gaming Association opposed that bill, and Gov. Tim Walz said he would not sign sports betting legislation not supported by the state’s tribal nations.

A Senate committee Thursday advanced that bill toward a vote of the full Senate. The next day, House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, said the inclusion of horse tracks threw a “monkey wrench” into the process and that she didn’t think the bill could move forward.

Although the House was able to pass its version May 12, the Senate bill never got a vote from the full chamber.

Minnesota is surrounded by states that allow legal sports betting in some form. More than 30 states have legalized it since 2018, when the Supreme Court threw out a federal law banning the practice outside of Nevada.

The odds of Minnesota legalizing sports betting appeared better than ever this year. Before lawmakers convened in January, Democrats and Republicans in key leadership positions in both the House and Senate expressed interest in getting a bill passed. In March, the tribal gaming association expressed support for the House bill to legalize sports betting.

Reps. Zack Stephenson, DFL-Coon Rapids, and Pat Garofalo, R-Farmington, led legal sports betting efforts in the House. Sen. Roger Chamberlain, R-Lino Lakes, sponsored a bill in the Senate that had the support of DFL Sen. Karla Bigham of Cottage Grove.

Garofalo expressed frustration that a proposal with bipartisan support in both chambers did not reach the governor’s desk to be signed into law.

“(There are) too many legislators focused on short-term political considerations instead of thinking about what is best for the whole state,” he said. “The sports gambling issue is symbolic of how screwed up the lawmaking process is in Minnesota.”