Sportsnaut
There’s no way to sugarcoat it. The Miami Dolphins are a bad team this season. Falling to 1-6, there’s no way they’re making the playoffs.
Rumors are swirling of the Dolphins once again deciding against firing Mike McDaniel, but after Miami’s embarrassing 31-6 loss to the Cleveland Browns, the head coach practically guaranteed changes were coming to the starting lineup. After Tua Tagovailoa‘s three interception game, which ended with him sitting on the bench in favor of rookie Quinn Ewers, some wondered if a quarterback change could be coming too.
Yet, on Monday, after coach McDaniel had a chance to calm down from another frustrating loss and evaluate the film, he revealed that the Dolphins are sticking with Tagovailoa as their starting QB. That means he’ll be taking all the Dolphins’ first-string reps at quarterback, leaving no room for Ewers to gain any ground in practice.
Will Tua take all the first team snaps in practice and remain starter at least next several weeks? Yes, McDaniel said. He will be starter this week.
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) October 20, 2025
Even if the Dolphins were having thoughts of moving in a direction that didn’t include Tagovailoa in their plans, they’re pretty much stuck with him. The Dolphins signed their 27-year-old franchise quarterback to a four-year, $212 million contract and he’s guaranteed to receive $54 million of that in 2026.
Trading Tagovailoa right now or in the offseason would incur $79.2 million in dead cap space, of which the Dolphins cannot afford. Waiting until 2027 would allow the Dolphins to move on while only takinga much more reasonable cap hit of roughly $34.8 million.
That means the Dolphins really have no choice but to continue playing the one-time Pro Bowler while hoping he can regain his top form. If not, things may actually get worse in Miami before they can get any better, if that’s even possible.
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