Why Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa could have strong second act elsewhere | Pro Football Talk | NFL on NBC

Somebody asked me recently and and you and I had the conversation before about Chris Greer, the GM, maybe being reassigned because of what he may or may not know about the pending Brian Flores litigation. He’s been there for so long. It would just be somebody else in charge. Mike McDaniel is clearly the one who’s most in trouble when it comes to being given the pink slip. But, you know, people think that Tua is going to be gone by next year. Well, if he’s gone, he’s going to have a hell of a bag of money that he’s walking out the door with cuz his salary is fully guaranteed for next year. AB: Absolutely. These people, the this organization twisted their arm to give to a an extension as opposed to making him play on his fifth year option. Um, it was really a move that they had to make in order to sort of keep the team and and send the right message to the organization that we’re headed in the right direction. But unfortunately, it’s it wasn’t ideal. And the reality is to his contract in 2026 is fully guaranteed. I personally don’t believe he’s one of the top five issues on this team right now. Um is he an elite quarterback? Absolutely not. But you know, Tu Tula can win games. He’s in my mind a Matt Ryan quarterback. He can get the job done. The question is how well is the team built around him? And I would make the argument this is probably one of the worst rosters I’ve seen since maybe 2007 and 2019. um it just doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t fit. Your strengths are now your weaknesses and areas that you absolutely had to address in the offseason like the offensive line are disasters and and yes, injuries factored into that, but you knew you did not have depth. And when you sit here and you draft four offensive linemen in the early rounds in since 2016 and none of them except for Robert Hunt has really panned out, that’s a you problem. That that’s not a Mike McDaniel problem. That’s that’s talent evaluation and that to me is the main issue with the Miami Dolphins. And you know, Omar, I rattled off the names earlier of the quarterbacks who thrived in their second or third or in some cases fourth acts. The Baker Mayfields, the Daniel Jones, the Sam Darnolds, Gino Smith, maybe eventually Cam Ward. I hadn’t thought of this. You drop Tua with a competent supporting cast. You do the things Tua does well. Tua could be a guy who has a strong second act somewhere else if and when it comes to that. It feels more like when than if at this point, but you know, if he could be a competent quarterback with enough help around him, then yeah, we could be talking about him as once he got away from a bad situation, he turns into a good quarterback. Absolutely. I think New Orleans a great home for him in terms of they’re a team in a dome. I think Tu is really b would benefit from playing in a dome in an environment where the the weather is in factor for at least half the season. Um Tua I I I remember going to the owners meeting last year and I was talking to a head coach and he was just like they don’t want him we’ll take them and you know yeah that that that coach went and addressed his quarterback situation in the offseason but who knows what’s going to happen. Um, and so Tua’s I don’t think people have this people have this thought process that Tua has no value. Tua is a very efficient quarterback. Name me effic he’s right now I think second in all time history for completion percentages behind Joe Burrow passing all the the greats. Yes, it’s a different era of football. Yes, the offense is built for it. But you don’t just do that by accident. He’s had three straight years of 100 passer rating. You don’t just do that by accident. the the question is can he finish games? Can he can he pull off fourth quarter victories? And you know against Carolina and against uh uh Chargers, he led the team to what should have been game-winning drives, but they couldn’t hold it for 46 seconds. Well, and you know, when I kind of separate in my mind the best quarterbacks and then the next level where they’re all kind of jumbled together, the best of the best quarterbacks are the ones who can make something happen when the play that’s called isn’t there. Yes. Who is not in that category? But there are plenty of other guys who are being highly compensated who are in that category. Kirk Cousins is in that category. Jared Goff to a certain extent is in that category. Sam Darnold’s in that category where once the walls close in on the play that’s been specifically designed and selected for this situation doesn’t work, uh-oh, what do we do? And there’s a lot of quarterbacks in the NFL. And the majority of the starters in the NFL are in that category of when the play that’s called isn’t there, it’s just a question of how do we get the best possible bad outcome to this play. Yeah. And and here’s the thing. Efficiency is very important. Accuracy is very important. Yes, you’re right. He’s not durable. He’s not really mobile. You he’s it’s been hammered in his brain. Do not run. Do not run. Do not run. And I think to understand how valuable he is to his team. But the reality is, you know, he hasn’t been able to win clutch games and and that’s going to continue to hold this franchise back. But let’s compare them to the college quarterbacks right now. Most of them sucked last week. the the guys that are being talked about for first round picks. So, do you think an organization like the Jets or New Orleans or whoever is shopping for quarterbacks are going to say an established efficient quarterback that maybe I can pay for $30 million a year or some some some other guy who, you know, is going to sell tickets, but we’re not necessarily sure he’s going to get us to our ultimate destination. So unless things turn around, and this weekend really is key for the Dolphins, we do envision some significant changes, and I would assume a new coach is going to feel compelled to find his new quarterback. And I hadn’t thought of this before, but it’s not as simple as keep Tua around and pay him or just cut him and pay him to not play for you and and hope you get some offset elsewhere because you won’t get much. You could trade him in theory. You could pay some of the money. Other team pays some of the money. Get a little something back. Set a little softer landing spot for the Dolphins. But you may be putting him in a spot where he could end up being pretty good. You got to be willing to accept that that you may hand Tua to a team where one of the narratives next year heading into week seven is going to be, damn, Tua is pretty good. Yeah. I mean, Ryan Tanahill was the NFL’s leading passer rated quarterback and took the Titans to two AFC championships after the Dolphins dumped him on the Tennessee Titans. So, you know, history just continues to repeat itself around here. So, I I wouldn’t be surprised if that happens at all. Well, that’s a great point. I should add Ryan Tanahill to the list of quarterbacks who started off in a bad place and ended up in a better spot. But, I think we’re going to see that more and more. And I hope you’re right. I hope we see incoming quarterbacks who recognize this isn’t going to be good for me if I go to the team that earned the first overall pick. So maybe I’m going to tell them no and I’ll deal with whatever heat that I take from the fans. And maybe one of these days the fans will understand how it works. Maybe they’ll understand it’s a business too. And they’ll understand it’s not a Harry Potter sorting hat. I can dream. I can hope. I can wish Omar but I’ve been doing this 25 years. Some fans are never going to see it the way that we do. Absolutely. I I you know, it’s it’s but they don’t want to. It’s it’s selective naivity. And I was the same way. I I said this earlier. I got pissed when my dad told me that wrestling isn’t real when I was a kid. I got pissed when people were trying to tell me that football’s a business. I don’t want to think of it that way. But we have to think of it that way because it is. Yes. It’s a business and it’s about the shield. And there’s absolutely no excuse that we don’t have turf fields when you absolutely if you’re so concerned about the tush push the argument against it is player safety. But you absolutely know players hate playing on these turf fields. The Metife field which two teams play on is notorious for for getting players hurt and you choose to do nothing. All they care about is putting out the stats that support their position. I I lived this a week and a half ago. I wrote a story about how we all know at this point that the players love grass, but the league will keep selectively you find one stat and this is the the the silver bullet to the argument and I didn’t mention the latest stat that they’re pushing. So they they send me oh by the way for so your reporting is complete. Here are the statistics that the lower extremity injuries are the players don’t care about that. Anybody that’s ever played a game on turf and played a game on grass and try to roll out of bed the next day knows the difference and nobody cares other than the players. Absolutely. Players don’t even like In Miami, we have the indoor facility is is turf. And while it’s more climate situation, the players would rather practice on the field because it gives them it gives them more po more more more more give back. Yeah. It’s simple basic science. The forces go into the ground when you play on grass. When you play on turf, the forces that your body create go back up into your body and you feel it and you and even if the you can find some statistic where you can say apples to apples the injury r’s the same. It doesn’t matter qualitatively players know they know analytics about analytics now and and they they they will find any analytic to to strengthen their argument. Teams do the same thing. But that that that’s one of the reasons Steve Ross he was having an issue getting the quality grass that he wanted. Um so he was just like damn it I’m just going to buy the company that sells the grass and now I produce sell all the grass to everybody. Omar, great stuff as always. Enjoy Cleveland this weekend. We’ll see what the Dolphins do and we’ll be checking out your work at the Miami Herald website. Hi it’s Mike Florio. Thanks for watching PFT on YouTube. Hit subscribe for the latest news and analysis from Pro Football

Mike Florio and Omar Kelly explore the possibility of major changes coming to the Dolphins after this season and examine why, with the right supporting cast, Tua Tagovailoa could thrive from a fresh start. #NBCSports #NFL #ProFootballTalk #miamidolphins
» Subscribe to NFL on NBC: https://www.youtube.com/NFLonNBC?sub_confirmation=1
» Watch Pro Football Talk live on Peacock weekdays 7a-9a: https://peacocktv.smart.link/v82e9dl56
» Get the latest from Pro Football Talk: https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/

NBC Sports Group serves sports fans 24/7 with premier live events, insightful studio shows, and compelling original programming. NBC Sports is an established leader in the sports media landscape with an unparalleled collection of sports properties that include the Olympics, NFL, Premier League, Big Ten, NASCAR, PGA TOUR, the Kentucky Derby, Tour de France and many more. Subscribe to our channel for the latest sporting news and highlights!

Mike Florio, creator of the industry-leading Profootballtalk.com, offers his NFL insight alongside regular guests, including former NFL athletes such as Chris Simms. Pro Football Talk informs and entertains with the most up-to-date news and analysis surrounding the topical NFL stories of the day.

Watch more from NBC Sports on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/nbcsports
Visit NBC Sports: https://www.nbcsports.com
Find NBC Sports on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NBCSports
Follow NBC Sports on Twitter: https://twitter.com/nbcsports
Follow NBC Sports on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nbcsports/

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/sunday-night-football
https://nbcsports.com/motors/nascar
https://nbcsports.com/soccer/premier-league

Why Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa could have strong second act elsewhere | Pro Football Talk | NFL on NBC
https://www.youtube.com/NFLonNBC

39 comments

  2. Why is it no one is talking about the DEFENSE being absolutely terrible with players that are really good or have been very recently? Need to keep McDaniels and fire GM and D coordinator

  8. Tuas has been dealt a raw hand since rookie season. They forced him to play his rookie season. He should’ve got to sat that year behind Fitz. His O Line has been bad All 5 years.

  16. As someone with only a passing interest in the Dolphins since the days of Don Shula, I’m fascinated by the range of comments here. Gotta say I understand the feelings of pain and suffering as a lifelong Cubs and Bears fan.

    Life was a lot easier in the days before social media. We could love on, complain about and bloviate about our teams at a much slower pace than nowadays. It must be a real challenge for folks associated with teams when their words are transmitted instantly. The opportunities to respond at the speed of light seem a real loss in our society.

  20. They neglected to put a strong o line in front of a fragile qb, and the defense is god awful. Like all time bad. Its not all on him, but he hasnt done himself any favors either. I think mcdaniels schemes could be successful with a different qb. Grier gotta go forsure

  21. OMAR IS A WHOLE IDIOT… DID THIS DUMMY REALLY COMPARE TUA TO MATT RYAN??? WHATS delusion Miami dolphins writer… never bring this dummy on this show ever again… he still thinks Tua is an elite qb… I’m losing brain cells listening to him talk football

  28. Tua is a liability exactly for all the reasons you mentioned. Every defense in the NFL can just pin their ears back because they know he will not run out of the pocket. It’s a huge advantage for every single defense that goes against the Dolphins.

  29. Most quarterbacks would kill to have that head coach drawing up plays with weapons like Tyreek, Waddle, and Achane. Tua isn’t going to have many better situations.

    And the Matt Ryan slander is crazy. He could throw the ball all over the field and could take a hit. I swear some analysts will say any anything

  32. ryan tannehill went to the titans and threw play action to aj brown off derrick henry runs. soon as that didnt exist and it was on ryan, 3 picks and a loss. dude was nothing different.

  35. An overly fragile QB who can't/won't scramble anymore and who has a weak arm has no future in the NFL. He was never a franchise QB.

  38. 7:30 for the record, nobody agrees with Omar in Miami. Not the fans. Not the press. Not the players. Not the coaches. Tua is a $150million albatross around our neck. Good luck to him. Hope he finds success elsewhere. We're done with him here.

  39. Tua going to a real team would be the best thing for him. He is so hand strung by this team. Twice this year alone he brought us back to win the end of the game. And two games the defense gave it right up and we lost. Tua has the best win loss record of his draft class. He just wins

Leave a Reply