It's been a while now since quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and the Miami Dolphins parted ways after... we'll say an uneven six years together. The highs of the 2022 and 2023 campaigns were ultimately overshadowed by injuries and clear limitations, and he was no longer worthy of the massive contract he signed back in 2024.
That became clear following his benching for 2025 seventh-round pick Quinn Ewers late in the season, and the conversation surrounding the Dolphins' offseason was dominated by opinions from analysts on how the new regime should handle him. General manager Jon-Eric Sullivan ultimately decided to make him a post-June 1st release, spreading out his massive dead cap hit over the next two seasons.
Since his release (and subsequent signing with the Atlanta Falcons), Tagovailoa didn't have a ton to say. That was, until his recent comments.
Tua Tagovailoa's latest comments show exactly why he was no longer a part of the Miami Dolphins future
In his Falcons introductory press conference, Tua had plenty of notable things to say about his last season with Miami and his fresh start with the Falcons. We have touched on some of his comments already, but there is one specific nugget from that press conference that Dolphins fans should find...interesting.
One of his most detailed answers was about his past injuries, and his thoughts frankly don't reflect how things really went in Miami over the past two seasons.
"The game of football will always entail physicality, so you can never foreshadow what the future's gonna look like of your health, whether it's your ankle, a hand injury, a concussion, a hip injury, whatever that may be," Tagovailoa said.
"In terms of health, (I) went through all the protocols of what I needed to do for the Falcons. Everything came out good. Some things are looking way better than the guys might've thought. So you either love it or you don't, that's what I would say. You either love the game or you don't. You know the challenges that are ahead in terms of playing this sport with injuries, but you either love it or you don't. That's what I would say."
While he is right about a lot of what he said there (especially the physicality of the NFL), the way his playstyle changed from his early seasons, compared to his final few with Miami, proves that he is well aware that he can't handle the punishment that often comes with playing quarterback in the NFL.
Over his first four seasons in the league, he picked up 36 first downs with his legs, according to Pro Football Focus. Over the last two seasons, however, he has just six. Even more damning, he had just one in 14 starts last season. He has become a true statue in the pocket, but with his poor arm talent and smaller frame, he can't get away with it in the way that guys like Matthew Stafford or Jared Goff can.
If his comments about having a clean bill of health are true, then the only explanation for his timid nature is his mentality. I am not asking him to do what he did early in his career and play recklessly, but a middle ground needs to be found if he is going to ever be a starting-caliber QB again.
I am not accusing Tagovailoa of lying about loving the game, but his heart and mind haven't exactly seemed fully in it over the past two seasons. That is likely a big part of why Sullivan felt he had to go, even though it would have saved him a ton of cap space to keep him on the roster. If he and head coach Jeff Hafley felt he could still offer something as a starting QB (or at least compete for the job), it would have made sense to keep him around.
Only time will tell if he can ever return to the level he reached when he led the NFL in passing yards back in 2023, but I think Dolphins fans have their doubts, and for good reason.