Tua Tagovailoa. The question mark and dark cloud that hovers over the Miami Dolphins franchise. It is the elephant in Jon-Eric Sullivan's room, and the one thing he may need to decide on before he can make a single offseason addition.
Dolphins fans know that Tagovailoa is going to be an expensive hit to the cap. $99 million if released before June 1st. $67 million if he is released after it. $54 million if he remains on the Dolphins roster. So expensive, no one wants to think about it.
There is a sliver of hope in all of this, thanks to ESPN's Dan Graziano, who pointed out one fact no one is talking about. Tagovailoa's cap hit percentage is the same as what Denver took with Russell Wilson.
Former QB precedent gives Miami Dolphins a reason to eat all of Tua Tagovailoa's contract in one bite
Denver took on an $80 million cap hit over two years when they got rid of him. The trade from Seattle proved to be one of the worst mistakes in Broncos history. The Dolphins are facing a similar situation with Tagovailoa, but his contract will blow the then record-setting dead cap hit out of the water.
Will a new team be able to absorb Tua Tagovailoa's contract? 💰@TheSamAcho weighs in ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/2iITUJGeNW
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) February 10, 2026
Trading Tagovailoa still makes the most sense from a business standpoint. Even if Miami were to eat most of the contract, they are going to eat it anyway. It's only a matter
"Keep in mind, that $99 million in dead cap is roughly the same percentage of the cap that Russell Wilson's $80 million was for the Broncos two years ago. "Dan Graziano
The news isn't going to make fans happier, but it does at least show that taking that kind of hit isn't going to cripple your team for decades. The Broncos have bounced back quite well without Wilson. This year, the Broncos will finally be out from under the Wilson hit.
What we have to remember is that Tagovailoa is not Sullvan's dark cloud, it's Stephen Ross'. He knows the team has to move on, and it was Ross who gave Brandon Shore the go-ahead to sign a contract he opposed.
Keeping Tagovailoa is an option for the Dolphins, but it isn't a very good one, no matter what Dan Marino thinks.