2.3L ('83-'97) Muffler heat shield/strap

[DECRanger]

Hi all. My 1990 Ranger was a former state vehicle, and now after a few years I have to replace the muffler. It looks like at some point the state workers had removed the tail pipe altogether, and decided to attach the muffler directly to the intermediate pipe (no doubt in a generous gesture to save the taxpayers money) and affixed it with a solid, but definitely homemade looking muffler bracket bolted to the chassis. So it's a short stubby setup.

Since the current setup vents exhaust right under the back of the cab, I'm looking to return to the factory setup and not breathe in as much exhaust. I see a mounting bushing towards the rear of the bed for the tailpipe hanger, but my question is: do I need the muffler strap as well? I see the muffler mounts with two clamps, one on either end, but I can't see any obvious place where the muffler strap would attach, and I couldn't find any reliable diagrams for a 1990 that show all the extra exhaust components like the muffler strap and heat shield (which I also can't seem to find where it mounts, since I don't appear to have one either). I didn't know if the hangers for the intermediate pipe and tailpipe were enough to support the muffler. It's about $10 on RockAuto, so not against getting one for the extra support.

So in a nutshell: how critical are the muffler bracket and heat shield, and where do they mount?

Thanks!