Why Tua Tagovailoa can be average and still lead this team
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins want Tua Tagovailoa to lead them to a Super Bowl but he has to first get to the playoffs. He doesn’t have to be great.
There is no bigger raging debate than that of the name Tua Tagovailoa. Say his name on social media or even on this site, and you will incite a debate that could lead to a verbal riot. Support him and you are an idiotic homer but if you don’t your also an idiot who only sees negative.
If and when Tua Tagovailoa is off the Dolphins roster, you will get the “told you so” fans coming out of the woodwork to laugh in your face. If he succeeds, it will be because of the other 10 guys on the roster. The reality is simple. Tua doesn’t have to be great to be a winner. He only has to be good and that is being above average.
The Dolphins are not built for a top tier quarterback who can lead them on his shoulders. I know, great teams are built that way. In New England, a great defensive system made Mac Jones into a Pro Bowl QB despite the fact he was so far from being one.
In Tampa Bay a great team all around gave Tom Brady enough to win a Super Bowl despite playing far from what he was over the years. In 2021, even Brady couldn’t get the Buccaneers into the final game of the season.
Tua needs help and there is no denying that. Justin Herbert can’t do it alone either. The Chargers offense is catered to what Herbert does well, throw the football. In Miami, the Dolphins need to build an offense that caters to what Tua does well. The question is what exactly that is?
Tagovailoa can throw the football but he isn’t elite in arm strength. He makes good decisions most of the time and is one of the more accurate young QBs in the league. Tua needs help though. He needs a far better offensive line and he needs a running game that is more than just complimentary.
In Los Angeles, Herbert has a complimentary running game and it works because the focus is different. Mike McDaniel wants to build the Dolphins into a top running game and that will do a lot for Tagovailoa who will not need to push the ball downfield, if it works. If the running game is built the way McDaniel wants it to, Tagovailoa will be a successful NFL quarterback who can take this team to the post season and beyond.
Consider that the 49ers were close to the Super Bowl this year. Not because Jimmy Garoppolo is a great QB. In fact, you could say that if the 49ers had Tagovailoa, they may have fared better in the championship game. Tua doesn’t tend to make the same mistakes over and over again and he is much more accurate than Jimmy G. But like Jimmy G, he needs the support around him.
There is a great divide between what Miami is now and what they can be. There is also a big gap between what Tagovailoa is now and what he could be in the right system. Miami doesn’t need a Justin Herbert or a Joe Burrow because their offense won’t need that elite QB.
The vitriol towards Tua is crazy. I’m not personally a fan of his on the field. I didn’t want Miami to draft him but I’m not blinded by the fact Miami may have missed out on a player that is far better. I do see talent in Tua and I see what he is good at. I’m not sure that McDaniel is going to bring out Tua’s greatness as he has claimed. I see a QB who needs support in many areas and the talent to lead the team so long as it is not entirely on his shoulders. That is what McDaniel is tasked with and that is where he needs to succeed if Tua is going to be better than average.