{"id":850811,"date":"2026-04-03T05:40:35","date_gmt":"2026-04-03T05:40:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/850811\/"},"modified":"2026-04-03T05:40:35","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T05:40:35","slug":"dolphins-torched-for-tua-tagovailoa-malik-willis-jaylen-waddle-decisions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/850811\/","title":{"rendered":"Dolphins torched for Tua Tagovailoa, Malik Willis, Jaylen Waddle decisions"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dolphins torched for Tua Tagovailoa, Malik Willis, Jaylen Waddle decisions<\/a> appeared first on ClutchPoints<\/a>. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Miami Dolphins<\/a> are facing growing criticism<\/a> from league executives after a series of high-profile offseason moves involving Tua Tagovailoa, Malik Willis<\/a> and Jaylen Waddle<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

As Miami prepares for the 2026 NFL Draft later this month in Pittsburgh, The Athletic\u2019s Mike Sando reported Thursday that multiple executives around the league have questioned the franchise\u2019s direction following its recent roster decisions.<\/p>\n

\u201cCutting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa<\/a> less than two years after signing him to a $212.4 million extension signaled a rebuild that some think will have the Dolphins swimming in circles,\u201d Sando wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo me, this is 2019 all over again,\u201d one executive said.<\/p>\n

The comparison referenced Miami\u2019s previous rebuild, when the team signed veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick while developing a young roster, only to finish with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. That result left the Dolphins unable to select quarterback Joe Burrow, who went No. 1 overall, before ultimately drafting Tagovailoa.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Miami\u2019s decision to release Tagovailoa<\/a> this offseason has already produced immediate ripple effects. The 27-year-old quarterback quickly signed with the Atlanta Falcons<\/a>, drawing further scrutiny surrounding the Dolphins\u2019 handling of the position.<\/p>\n

Executives also raised concerns about Miami\u2019s decision to replace Tagovailoa with Willis rather than fully absorbing the financial consequences and committing to a long-term rebuild.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey should not have signed Malik Willis<\/a>,\u201d one executive said. \u201cThey should have taken the full Tua cap charge in one season. They should have gone with Quinn Ewers and just played out the season.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tua Tagovailoa release, Malik Willis signing, Jaylen Waddle trade draw league skepticism\"Steve<\/p>\n

Steve Roberts-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

The Dolphins signed Willis to a three-year, $67.3 million contract<\/a> as part of their offseason overhaul, betting on his development after a limited but efficient showing in 2025.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Additional skepticism centered on Miami\u2019s trade of Waddle to the Denver Broncos<\/a>. The Dolphins acquired first-, third- and fourth-round picks in the 2026 draft but also sent a fourth-round selection in the deal.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou should know enough about Willis to know many of his throws were flareouts and simple stuff,\u201d another executive said. \u201cSo, unless you plan on running an offense like that, what are you doing? And then I don\u2019t think they got enough for (Jaylen) Waddle. They got the equivalent of the 25th pick in the draft. It should have been a lot more.\u201d<\/p>\n

The criticism extended beyond individual transactions to broader concerns about Miami\u2019s roster construction and leadership structure.<\/p>\n

\u201cGive me another idea,\u201d a third executive said. \u201cThey will have as many minimum-salary guys on their 53 as any team in the league. The problem there is that they have an absentee owner and some really empowered people in the front office, including the president. If you\u2019re the GM, that\u2019s a tough situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

With the draft approaching and a new era underway, the Dolphins\u2019 strategy remains under intense scrutiny as the franchise attempts to reshape its roster and establish a clearer long-term direction.<\/p>\n

Related: Ex-Colts, Browns linebacker retires after 9 NFL seasons<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: ESPN gives Dolphins new WR in mock draft with Jaylen Waddle, Tyreek Hill gone<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dolphins torched for Tua Tagovailoa, Malik Willis, Jaylen Waddle decisions appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":850812,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2049],"tags":[254,258,217,7,14706,1577,42302,4097,216,251,2087,8575,6,520,1849,3408,3235,3452],"class_list":{"0":"post-850811","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-miami-dolphins","8":"tag-atlanta-falcons","9":"tag-denver-broncos","10":"tag-dolphins","11":"tag-football","12":"tag-jaylen-waddle","13":"tag-joe-burrow","14":"tag-league-executives","15":"tag-malik-willis","16":"tag-miami","17":"tag-miami-dolphins","18":"tag-miamidolphins","19":"tag-mike-sando","20":"tag-nfl","21":"tag-pittsburgh","22":"tag-quinn-ewers","23":"tag-ryan-fitzpatrick","24":"tag-the-dolphins","25":"tag-tua-tagovailoa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116339175975088263","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/850811","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=850811"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/850811\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/850812"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=850811"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=850811"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=850811"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}