How well will Tua Tagovailoa match up with his 1st round brethren?
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins don’t play this weekend but what will Tua Tagovailoa do in his first game?
Tua Tagovailoa is a dynamic player but there are concerns, questions, and simple wonderment about what he might do in his first start.
Earlier today Pablo Rosero looked at what other Miami Dolphins QBs they drafted in round one did in their first starts. You can read that by clicking the link below. Now we are going to go toe to tow with the other QBs drafted in the first round, this year.
While each team is different with varying strengths and weaknesses, the common thread between them all is that they are rookies who need time to acclimate to the NFL. With Tagovailoa ready to take on the Rams in just over a week, he will step into the shoes that two of the other three first-round draftees have already done.
Burros was drafted number one overall and there was no question he would start from day one. Of the four rookie 1st round picks, Burrow now has the most experience simply because he has six games under his belt.
Burrow’s first game saw him complete 23 of 36 passes for 193 yards and one interception. He was sacked three times and rushed eight times for 46 yards and a touchdown. He also fumbled once. Needless to say, he kept the game against the Chargers close and lost 13-16.
Burrow’s best game statistically came in week two when he completed 37 passes of 61 attempted for 316 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. His passer rating was 90.6. Overall, Burrow has four 300 yard games already this season with six touchdowns.
Herbert has four games under his belt and was named the full-time starter the rest of the season a week ago. He took over after Tyrod Taylor was injured while getting an injection from the team’s physician in week 2.
Herbert is 0-4 as a starter but he has 9 touchdowns including three in week four and four in week 5. His best game came in week four when he posted an 80% completion percentage and went 20/25 for 3 touchdowns. In his 4 TD game, he only completed 59% of his passes.
In Herbert’s first start, he went 22 of 33 for 311 yards with 1 TD and 1 interception. He also rushed for a touchdown.
Related Story. A look at previous Miami Dolphins QBs and their first NFL starts. light
Tua Tagovailoa
It is never really fair to compare players this early in their career but fan expectations range from the nervous to the extreme excited and frankly, Tua is going to be facing a much better defense in his first game than Herbert against Kansas City and Burrow against the Chargers did.
Miami is also a team in transition but so are the Bengals and while the Chargers may be a little better overall, they too are a work in progress.
For more articles by Brian Miller click here. dark. Next
The information above isn’t meant to be anything more than a discussion topic but if it shows us anything, it is that we should have a little tempered expectations. If Tua performs worse, the same, or better really won’t show us the kind of QB he is going to be in the NFL. What we need to see is progress from week to week, an expanding offensive system from week to week, and the way he handles the game.