Pro Football Rumors
At this point, former No. 5 overall pick and primary starter for the last six years Tua Tagovailoa has been demoted, and his future in Miami is very much in doubt. The Dolphins have instead opted to see what rookie seventh-round pick Quinn Ewers can offer at position over the closing weeks of the season.
We’re only in the first year of the four-year, $212.4MM contract extension Tagovailoa signed before the start of the 2024 season. The Hawai’i-native was just two years removed from leading the NFL in yards per attempt and passer rating en route to a ninth-place finish in MVP voting and had just earned his first Pro Bowl selection after leading the league in passing yards. Things changed, however, as concussions suddenly became a major concern.
Tagovailoa became familiar with injuries early. Four weeks after getting his first opportunity to replace Ryan Fitzpatrick as the starter in Week 8 of his rookie season, Tagovailoa was sidelined for a game due to a finger injury. Over the next two years, some concerns about his durability arose as he missed eight games in that span due to some fractured ribs in 2021 and concussion issues in 2022. Looking back on the 2022 injuries, Tagovailoa would later tell the media that he considered retiring because of the concussions.
Instead, he came back and started all 17 games in 2023, showing that he could put together a full campaign good enough to land a multi-year, $50+MM-per-year deal. He got two games into his new contract before a third concussion placed him on injured reserve. After a four-game absence, Tagovailoa was able to return, and he, once again, found a way to impress by leading the league with a career-high 72.9 completion percentage.
This year has seen a regression, though. The loss of his star receiver, Tyreek Hill, certainly contributed to the struggles, but this year, Tagovailoa has shown limited mobility and declining decision-making. Tagovailoa has taken a career-high 30 sacks and thrown a career-high and league-leading 15 interceptions so far this year.
The decision to sit Tagovailoa has given the Dolphins a chance to see what they have in the young rookie out of Texas, but the struggles that led here have tied their hands a bit with their potential options to move on from Tagovailoa. As one AFC executive put it, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, “they are almost stuck with him.”
Trading the 27-year-old is clearly the team’s preferred option, but the market doesn’t seem eager to bid for Tagovailoa. At the moment, teams like the Jets, Browns, Vikings, Colts, Raiders, Cardinals, and Steelers could all be on the lookout for a new passer in 2026, per Fowler. However, Indianapolis and Las Vegas have some serviceable veterans that can bridge a gap as the draft and develop a young passer, and the Browns and Vikings have young passers under contract they may want to see more of before locking into a new option.
Furthermore, the Cardinals are looking...
