Mike McDaniel is apparently someone you don't want to be on the bad side of. Last year, it was Jalen Ramsey who endured an entire offseason of speculation, and this year, it seems Tua Tagovailoa is going to be the punching bag.
McDaniel met with the media on Friday, and rather than continue to roll forward with the Dolphins bandwagon, he reversed and ran over his quarterback again. There is little doubt that as long as McDaniel is the coach of the team, there may not be a job for Tagovailoa.
When asked how the players responded to Quinn Ewers being the starting quarterback, McDaniel may have thrown the match onto the fire with his reply.
"I saw the team respond and derive energy from what he was doing at the quarterback position."Mike McDaniel
Miami Dolphins HC Mike McDaniel continues to make it clear he has no faith in Tua Tagovailoa
Perhaps he is doing whatever he can to distance himself from the overpaid Tagovailoa; maybe he just doesn't care anymore. Regardless, McDaniel isn't holding a lot back when he is asked about the quarterback situation.
The comment was actually a double-down statement, as he said earlier in the press conference that the players are showing more energy and confidence playing with Ewers.
McDaniel had been asked what it was about Ewers that he believed was worth promoting to the starting job. He replied with how the emergency third quarterback was preparing every week as the E3 QB.
According to Ewers, who met the press on Thursday, he has not taken a single practice snap all year with the first team unit; in fact, he has said he only practiced as the scout team QB all season. It is becoming clear that there is more going on behind the scenes than fans and media know.
McDaniel is either fighting for his job or has finally lost his patience with Tagovailoa. Typically, the head coach refrains from making comments that could be construed as negative toward a player, while he has yet to use Tagovailoa's name, his continued demeanor when talking about him has changed.
This week, McDaniel is planning on calling the same plays he has all year. In the past, he has done the same when Tagovailoa was out; they didn't win many of them. The head coach believes that Quinn has a better grasp of the offense; he once said the same about Skylar Thompson.
Unlike Thompson, McDaniel never benched Tagovailoa in favor of the backup, let alone the third-team backup. As speculation continues to grow regarding Tagovailoa's future, it seems more like it is inevitably heading toward a massive breakup.