What ought the Dolphins to do in Tua Tagovailoa? Guessing how the Miami quarterback’s off-season will go
It’s not fair that a single game can change the way you feel about the whole season, but the Miami Dolphins are likely to have that happen.
The Dolphins had the best offense in the league at the end of the regular season, averaging 401.3 yards per game and 29.2 points per game.
However, after losing to the Chiefs of Kansas City 26-7 in Super Wild Card Weekend on Saturday night, fans aren’t optimistic about the future.
It was a recurring theme all year for the Dolphins to not do well against good teams. During the regular season, Miami was 1-5 against teams that made the playoffs and 10-1 against teams that didn’t make the playoffs.
If you take the latest loss to the Chiefs, Miami had a 1-6 record against playoff teams, giving them a 110-point deficit in those games.
When you’re losing to teams that are only somewhat good, the huge wins over teams including the Denver Broncos or the New York Jets aren’t as great.
Miami also lost in the last few minutes. The Dolphins only scored 20 points or more once in their last four games throughout the 2023 season, and they scored a single touchdown on each of their last 16 offensive attempts.
There are many people to blame, but quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s play is and will remain a big plot point.
Tagovailoa had a great year all around. At the end of the season, he was one of the seven choices to win NFL MVP, and he helped the Dolphins have their first 11-win year since 2008.
There were 4,624 passing yards, 29 passing touchdowns, the third-best completion percentage (69.3%), and 222 first downs gained through the air, tied for second-most in the NFL.
The 25-year-old quarterback led the NFL in passing yards and scores. But he wasn’t always or against everyone the strongest.
Tagovailoa made 20 out of 39 passes against Kansas City on Saturday night, completing 20 passes over 199 yards, one score, and one pick. Miami’s overall offense was only 264 yards.
Tagovailoa froze in the fourth-coldest ballgame in NFL history. One of the best teams during the regular season didn’t even get into the red zone. Tagovailoa’s only score pass wasn’t even very good.
After his team lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 26-7 in the AFC wild-card round on Saturday, Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa has plenty to think about this summer. For now, his future contract talks are not the most important thing on his mind.
Tagovailoa said he doesn’t have any concerns about getting a new contract this summer, even though he is in the last year of his rookie deal. He is confident in what he gives to the Dolphins’ team.
It doesn’t bother me at all. “I believe in myself completely,” he said. “I’m sure of what I can do for our company, but right now we’re just thinking about tonight and what happened.” We’ll let this grow and discover what we can accomplish to make things better.
Tagovailoa’s health was a big deal going into the 2023 season after he missed five games and got two concussions in 2022, including Miami’s playoff loss against the Buffalo Bills.
He worked out in a breakfast jiu-jitsu routine and built strength during the off-season to learn how to fall and avoid hitting his forehead on the ground, which is what caused both of his concussions in 2022.
Tagovailoa trained hard over the off-season, and it paid off. He started all 17 games for the Dolphins in 2017 as well as led the NFL in passing yards with 4,624; he also set career highs in scores (29) and completion percentage (69.3).
He started at quarterback for the AFC in the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career. Tagovailoa threw four scores and five picks in Miami’s last three games, which ended in a loss to the Chiefs on Saturday.
He made 20 out of 39 passes to pass for 199 yards in his playoff start against Kansas City. Of those yards, 53 came on a touchdown pass from wide receiver Tyreek Hills early in the second quarter. He also threw one interception.
The Dolphins’ average in their last three games was 304.6 yards, which is almost 100 yards less than the average of 401.3 yards they had during the regular season.
When asked about the 2023 season, Tagovailoa said, “I would say that there have been a lot of ups and downs.” “There were a lot of guys who started the season with us but couldn’t finish it with us.”
There are so many ups and downs associated with accidents. But as a team, we’ll never use any of those things as an excuse, and we won’t.