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Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert battle coming soon to Miami

By Brian Miller

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - OCTOBER 12: Justin Herbert #10 of the Los Angeles Chargers looks to pass against the New Orleans Saints during their NFL game at Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 12, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - OCTOBER 12: Justin Herbert #10 of the Los Angeles Chargers looks to pass against the New Orleans Saints during their NFL game at Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 12, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) /
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Debate among fans over Tua Tagovailao and Justin Herbert have raged since before the draft.

This week is a special match-up in Miami as Tua Tagovailoa leads his Dolphins against the Chargers led by Justin Herbert.

Last April the Miami Dolphins opted to draft Tua Tagovailoa over Justin Herbert and a pick later, Herbert was drafted by the Chargers. Some believe that Herbert is the better QB while others see far more potential in Tagovailoa. One thing is for certain, this could become a rare out-of-division rivalry that may last a decade or more.

Fair or unfair quarterbacks drafted in the same round of the same draft class are tied together through the careers. Dan Marino, Jim Kelly, Ken O’Brien, and John Elway are always mentioned when talking about the 1983 class and the fact three of the five taken that year are in the HOF is incredible. It’s not just that class either.

Ryan Tannehill, Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin, III, and even Russel Wilson are connected by virtue of their draft spots.

It was easy to see why Marino and Kelly were so connected, they were division rivals but even Elway was always in that discussion of comparison. This year, the Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, and Tua Tagovailoa talk will continue through their careers.

This weekend we get an early look at what this rivalry could be. Did Miami make the mistake of taking Tua over Herbert? Herbert is having a really good rookie campaign but Tua looked phenomenal in his 2nd start. This game is going to be a lot of fun and may very well come down to which team’s defense can shut down the other teams QB.

We may never put to bed the debate over Tua or Herbert and maybe someday it comes down to who wins championships but as a Dolphins fans, this out-of-conference rivalry potential is hard to not get excited about. Last week, Tua outdueled Kyler Murray and in a few weeks he will battle it out with another top 2020 quarterback, Joe Burrow. Exciting actually doesn’t come close. This is just pure fun now.

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