Free agency will not fix this year's Miami Dolphins roster any more than the NFL Draft will. Fans must be patient as Jon-Eric Sullivan begins a makeover on the team's personnel.
No player entering the 2026 offseason is under a larger microscope than Tua Tagovailoa. His future with the team is in doubt. Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley have blatantly been coy about whether or not he will compete for a job or even have one.
While Sullivan continues to mull over his options, the Dolphins are hurdling toward a March 13th deadline that Sullivan can't ignore.
Tua Tagovailoa's guarantees escalate if he is still on the Miami Dolphins roster in mid-March
On March 11th, the NFL's new year begins. The two-day tampering window will close, and all moves will be officially announced. That includes trades. The Dolphins don't have a deadline on Tagovailoa that coincides with the first day of the business year. Their deadline is two days later.
The Dolphins' quarterback will get an additional $3 million in guaranteed money if he is on the roster on March 13th. Considering the Dolphins are potentially prepared to spend as much as $54 million and possibly more, just to get rid of him, $3 million doesn't sound like much.
Regardless, it is still a chunk of change that they won't have to pay if he isn't here. It's a small reprieve on an otherwise horrible contract.
What the Dolphins ultimately decide to do with Tagovailoa will begin the changes Sullivan and Hafley have spoken about. It will be the first and most important piece removed from the offseason equation. Without Tagovailoa on the roster, Miami will know exactly what they have to spend, how much they need to cover, and what they can do in free agency throughout the offseason.
Until a decision on Tagovailoa is made, the Dolphins will be stuck in limbo with the rest of the roster. That $3 million may not seem like much until you have to pay it to him, or eat it as the dessert on his contract.
Miami won't make any more moves until March, but when the calendar flips, the watch will begin as Sullivan explores the reality of his situation.