On a frigid, freezing Monday night, Tua Tagovailoa took the field in Pittsburgh with the onus of keeping the Miami Dolphins' season hopes alive. Instead, he delivered fans a lump of coal.
Statistically, Tagovailoa's numbers were not horrible. He went 22/28 for 253 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. His rating was 113.2. Usually, you would love to see this kind of game. Sadly, there is always a but.
What Tagovailoa couldn't do was lead his team. His passes were mostly short dump-offs. His inability to read the pressure led to four sacks by the Steelers' defense. His play was so average that it caught the eye of the Dolphins' great, Richmond Webb.
Tua Tagovailoa turns in another average effort for Miami Dolphins, proving he isn't the answer
Webb spent his time during the game chatting it up with fans on social media. After the game was over, he saw what most fans saw. A quarterback who needs to be better than what he is. His stats were buoyed by the Steelers' prevent defense in the fourth quarter.
His two touchdowns came late in the game when Pittsburgh was simply doing what it had to do just to get the game over with.
We have to have better quarterback play in order to win in this league. #Dolphiins🐬🐬🐬
— Richmond Webb (@RichmondWebb) December 16, 2025
It's not lost that Tagovailoa isn't the answer. His play throughout the season has drawn criticism from the fans, the media, and former players. Joe Rose has been quite loud with his assertion of Tagovailoa's play.
What makes the comments by Webb more concerning is that he is one of the most positive former players who rarely calls out the team for problems. Usually the voice of reason, if Webb sees this as a problem, it's a problem.
The Dolphins don't have many options regarding Tagovailoa. His contract is widely known to be non-Dolphins-friendly next season. That doesn't mean they can't move on; it would, however, be expensive.
At this point, however, it may be for the best to bite the bullet and begin looking to toward the future. The answer at QB likely isn't on the roster, but getting a look at either Zach Wilson or Quinn Ewers might be the way to go in 2026 instead of running it back with Tua.