Mike McDaniel names Tua Tagovailoa the starter week 1

Oh the NFL, it never stops(in my best Stugotz impression) new coach Mike McDaniel at the NFL owner’s meeting has definitively said that Tua Tagovailoa will be the starter come the beginning of the 2022 season.

Not that I needed to hear this out loud because I knew full well that Tua was going to be the starter come week one but it’s a good thing that it’s been and we can move on to the next mild controversy. This means Teddy Bridgewater, who is an excellent backup and who is a guy that can absolutely win games in this league, will be the #2 quarterback.

Even with Bridgewater sort of opening the door to the possibility of him being given the chance to compete with Tua and perhaps winning the job with comments he made last week, it’s nice to see Mike McDaniel just getting out in front of this and squashing this before it really goes anywhere. A former coach here wouldn’t have done this and instead would evaded the topic for as long as he could making the whole team look silly.

This is good to have out there for two reasons. One, it means that Tua knows where he stands and now everybody knows where he stands. I’m sure, based on what McDaniel said when he told them both exactly what their roles were, that Tua already knew that he was the starter but now it’s out there for everybody. He’s the starter come week one.

Now, does that mean if he puts up some terrible games in a row or gets injured that he won’t be replaced for Bridgewater? Absolutely not. I’ve written a few times over the past few weeks that the time is now for Tua to show that he is a starter in the NFL and not just a starter but a guy that is good enough to overcome some bad plays and games. He’s not there yet, but I really hope he gets there.

The other reason this was a good move by McDaniel is that now the questions don’t have to be asked to him on who the starter is going to be. He said Tua is the starter and Teddy Bridgewater is the backup. That is each of their roles and it’s defined. Mike McDaniel showing another way why he’s he’s smart and gets the big picture.

He certainly seems like a guy who knows what to say and when to say it. He’s already been dubbed as the funny, casual coach but under all those jokes and relaxed vibes is a guy who knows what he’s doing and actually has fun doing it that way. It’s a much better feeling, for the fans I think, compared to the last regime fumbling around information and not knowing what to do about it.

As I said, things can change come the beginning of the season but for these next five and a half months, we know who’s starting. That’s a good thing.

Everyone, and I mean this, have a wonderful day and do what you can to escape the Will Smith/Chris Rock situation. That’s everywhere and it’s already too much. But #teamChrisRock all the way.

Make sure you check out Phin Phanatics for more coverage of everything Mike McDaniel says and the rest of what’s going on.

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