The Miami Dolphins are not officially eliminated from the postseason chase, but we can most definitely stop talking about it. What we can't do is stop talking about Tua Tagovailoa.
Miami's starting quarterback couldn't carry the team on his back when they needed him to. Facing a Houston Texans team looking to punch their ticket to the postseason and holding onto the Dolphins' hopes of a third straight playoff appearance, Tua came up short, yet again.
He was under constant pressure from a good Texans defense. Miami's offensive line played as badly as could be expected. When Tua did have time, he overthrew his receivers, fumbled after being strip-sacked, and threw three costly interceptions. Miami scored just 12 points in a disappointing performance in a must-win game.
RELATED: Tua Tagovailoa gives Dolphins another reason to draft a quarterback
The narrative surrounding Tua has been that he can't win against good teams, and he can't win in the cold. This year, he has had opportunities to quiet some of those. Against the Packers, the Dolphins looked horrible, and now, against another team above .500, he is once again showing his inconsistencies.
Tua Tagovailoa won't be an elite quarterback until he consistently beats good football teams
Dolphins fail once again to win a Big game, in December, on the Road
— DolphinsTalk.com (@DolphinsTalk) December 15, 2024
The 2024 season is now over, and this head coach and general manager have a lot of questions to answer to what went wrong this season.
Against the Texans, Tagovailoa looked lost for most of the game. The Texans forced him to make multiple reads, and Tua couldn't do it consistently, another knock on the Dolphins quarterback.
For all the good things Tua does each week, there is a serious disconnect when he is in big games against good football teams. Maybe it's not Tua but the play-calling of Mike McDaniel, who does no one any favors against winning teams.
It leaves the Dolphins with a 6-8 record and, barring a miracle, out of the playoffs. This team faces has far more questions than answers after Week 15.