Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is entering the final year of his deal, and he appears to be ramping things up in preparation for a new contract.
Head coach Mike McDaniel spoke about some of the changes Tagovailoa has made this offseason, saying that he has getting more agile in order to work better in the pocket.
Tagovailoa is coming off of an impressive 2023 campaign in which he led the NFL with 4,624 passing yards to go along with 29 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. He also completed 69.3 percent of his passes while posting a passer rating of 101.1 en route to a Pro Bowl appearance.
But in spite of Tagovailoa’s strong effort last season, many people are still not sold on him as the Dolphins’ franchise quarterback moving forward.
Will The Dolphins Extend Tua Tagovailoa Before The Season?
Miami sure seems to be taking its time in negotiating with Tagovailoa on a new deal.
There have been some discussions, but clearly, not a whole lot of progress has been made, which has many wondering if the Dolphins will agree to an extension with Tagovailoa before the 2024 campaign begins.
The question is, what exactly is Tagovailoa worth?
Right now, Joe Burrow is the highest-paid player in football and is earning $55 million annually. Surely, Miami will not want to pay Tagovailoa as much as Burrow, but these days, quarterbacks are always resetting the market.
If Tagovailoa is aiming to land somewhere in the neighborhood of $55 million per year, the Dolphins seem justified in dragging things out.
As good as Tagovailoa has been, there are some legitimate concerns about him.
First of all, the 25-year-old has struggled against good teams. Case in point, Miami went just 1-6 against teams with winning record in 2023.
Second, Tagovailoa does not play particularly well in colder weather. Given that the other three AFC East teams all play in cold climates, that could be an issue for Tagovailoa moving forward.
Then there are some who feel that Tagovailoa is merely a product of two great receivers in Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. That being said, the University of Alabama alum still has to put the ball in the right place, so that is probably one of the lesser arguments against him.
Of course, there are also health concerns surrounding Tagovailoa, especially when it comes to concussions. He played a full season last year, but he missed four games in 2022 due to scary head injuries.
We’ll see if the Dolphins and Tua Tagovailoa are able to hammer something out in the coming months.
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