Miami Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan suggested Thursday that he is nearing a resolution on quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s future with the organization.
Speaking during a fan event (h/t Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio), Sullivan addressed the quarterback situation, noting that he plans on adding competition regardless of Tua’s status:
“But we’re getting close to a decision,” Sullivan said. “And when we do, we’ll let Tua know whether he’s gonna be part of this or not, and we’ll move forward. But you can rest assured that we will add competition to that room, one way or the other, to make it the best that we can.”
Although Tagovailoa could potentially be on the way out, Sullivan praised him and what he has accomplished during his six seasons in Miami, saying, “Tua was in my office the other day, if I’m being perfectly frank. We had a great conversation. Tua has been a very good player in this league. He’s done a lot of really good things for the Miami Dolphins. You guys should be proud to have him and having had him.”
Even if Tua does stick around, Sullivan made it clear that he intends to consider quarterbacks in the 2026 NFL draft, which is something he made Tagovailoa well aware of.
On Sunday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that the Dolphins were looking to find a trade partner willing to take on Tagovailoa and his contract.
Miami signed Tua to a four-year, $212.4 million deal in 2024, meaning he is under contract through 2028.
Per Schefter, Tagovailoa is due to make $54 million guaranteed in 2026, and cutting him before June 1 would result in an NFL-record $99 million in dead money, which is why trading him is the ideal scenario for the Dolphins should they move on.
Schefter noted that the Dolphins are open to absorbing part of Tua’s contract in order to make it easier to facilitate a trade.
Originally selected fifth overall in the 2020 NFL draft out of Alabama, Tagovailoa has been Miami’s starter for the majority of his six-year career.
Overall, he is 44-32 as a starter and has completed 68.0 percent of his passes for 18,166 yards, 120 touchdowns and 59 interceptions.
Tagovailoa had a career year in 2023, which was his second year under head coach Mike McDaniel. He completed 69.3 percent of his passing attempts for a league-high 4,624 yards, plus 29 touchdowns and 14 interceptions en route to his first and only Pro Bowl selection.
Injuries limited Tua to just 11 games in 2024, and then he largely struggled last season, going 6-8 in 14 starts, and completing 67.7 percent of his passes for 2,660 yards, 20 touchdowns and a career-high 15 interceptions.
The Dolphins benched the 27-year-old Tagovailoa for the final three games of the 2025 season in favor of rookie seventh-round pick Quinn Ewers, which may have spelled the end of his tenure in Miami.
A regime change perhaps increases the chances of Tua’s departure even more with Sullivan taking over as GM and Jeff Hafley replacing McDaniel as head coach.
It is unclear who will replace Tagovailoa if the Dolphins move on from him, but Malik Willis is the top free-agent quarterback expected to be available, and when Miami picks 11th overall in the 2026 NFL draft, Alabama’s Ty Simpson and Miami’s Carson Beck may be among the best quarterback options available.