3 likely reasons the Dolphins haven't given Tua Tagovailoa his monster deal yet

1. Can Tua Tagovailoa actually get better at the position?

I've listed and gone over the physical improvements that Tagovailoa made last year. We know that he has slimmed down in an effort to be a bit more elusive. That will make him able to run more, which automatically is an improvement.

However, can Tagovailoa get better in more important areas, such as getting to his second and third read and being able to play off-script when the initial play breaks down? That remains to be seen for the QB.

When the other 10 guys on offense do their job, Tagovailoa can pick any team apart and lead the offense to points. When there's a breakdown on the offensive line or the receivers don't get open, Tua has no Plan B. He hasn't shown an ability to keep the play going by scrambling (the weight loss should help this a bit) or by moving around to left or right and finding a receiver who eventually got themselves open.

These off-script plays often decide the biggest games. We see the top QBs in the game late in the year make game-changing plays that weren't called in the huddle. That's what the NFL has become and it's something he has done very little of. He needs to improve that and it's possible the Dolphins know that he can't.

I'm not saying they do in fact think this, but I'm saying it could be something that is making them pause in this whole contract negotiation. Personally, if Tua, can to a level, trust in himself that he isn't going to get knocked out of games if he takes hits, he can find guys open down the field more. He has the accuracy and cleverness to do that.