College football expert thinks Dolphins should replace Tua Tagovailoa in NFL Draft
The Miami Dolphins are set to enter year 5 of the Tua Tagovailoa era after spending the fifth overall pick on the Alabama quarterback in the 2020 NFL Draft. After struggling to stay healthy in the first three years of his career, Tagovailoa played every game in 2023 and helped lead the Dolphins to the playoffs.
While the 'Fins were suspect against better teams, Tagovailoa still had a solid season, throwing for over 4,600 yards and 29 touchdowns while throwing 14 picks. With Tagovailoa set to play on his fifth-year option in 2024 and the Dolphins not extending him as of this writing, college football analyst Joel Klatt had Miami selecting a quarterback in his latest mock draft.
Should the #Dolphins draft a QB? @joelklatt says YES ⬇️
— The Joel Klatt Show: A CFB Pod (@JoelKlattShow) March 21, 2024
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Joel Klatt says Dolphins should draft a QB to replace Tua Tagovailoa
"Tua does not have a deal and to me that's telling. The way I view Tua and Mike McDaniel's offense is it's not the right offense for him."
Klatt reiterates that while this isn't an indictment on Tagovailoa, the offensive fit isn't right for him. He says that the Dolphins need a guy who "throws on time with great leverage and accuracy down the field". He says the player who has all of those attributes should be available when the Dolphins are on the clock at pick 21 and that quarterback is Washington's Michael Penix Jr.
"As good as Tua has played -- and he has, he's gotten much better -- this is probably not the right fit." Klatt continues that Tyreek Hill frequently has to stop and reach back to haul in Tagovailoa's passes. He points to the playmakers that Penix had at Washington and says that they never had to break stride when catching passes from their quarterback.
It could be telling that the Dolphins haven't extended Tua Tagovailoa yet but does that mean they're planning on drafting a signal-caller in the first round? Tagovailoa is still under contract for another season and it's time for the former first-round pick to prove that he's worthy of being paid like a franchise quarterback.
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