Miami’s last chance to turn a failed season around came on Sunday in Houston. The Dolphins failed to capitalize, thanks in part to three interceptions thrown by quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
Each of the three passes were meant for receiver Tyreek Hill, who once boasted that Tua is the most accurate quarterback in the NFL.
“The bad news first is that there were in fact three interceptions,” coach Mike McDaniel told reporters on Monday when asked about the trio of miscues. “That’s the bad news. The good news is both Tyreek and Tua have been very accountable, and both say it’s their fault. That’s what you want. It’s the second-best to not having the discussion at all because it didn’t happen, but I think it’s very important as you move forward within the NFL season to prepare for the next opponent that guys, your whole locker room, is pointing the thumb, not the finger . . . . And the best way to ensure that is your captains are handling themselves that way. I think, I hear both of them, the things that they could have done and I think that’s a — I can let them argue over that responsibility because at the end of the day, the responsibility of the ball goes to everybody and the only way that you’re going to make sure that that mistake or those mistakes don’t happen again, is if you have accountability to have standards of play that don’t allow for that. So I was happy with their response to the situation because what you don’t want are people talking about what the other person could do, because they’re not the other person, that doesn’t help what we’re trying to do.”
That’s fine. But it’s far better not to have anything to be accountable about. For Tua and Tyreek, it’s three very bad plays. Three interceptions. Whether Tyreek was in the wrong place or Tua made a bad decision or threw a bad pass, it shows that there’s a ceiling.
On the Dolphins. On Tua. Perhaps on McDaniel.
After the firing of Brian Flores and the hiring of McDaniel, the franchise went overboard to prop up Tua. Which is fine. At some point, however, he needs to prop up himself. Time after time, he has had a chance to validate the team’s faith in him, and he has failed.
As Simms has said in the aftermath of Sunday’s loss, the team’s highest-paid player (at $55 million per year) needs to step up in key moments. More often than not, and particularly when not playing at home and/or against a great team, Tua doesn’t.
And there’s nothing the Dolphins can do about it. Not until 2027, that is. The contract the Dolphins gave him (while bidding only against themselves) ties him to the team through 2026.
Is Tua good? Yes. Can he run the team’s Harlem Globetrotter offense, keeping defenses guessing as to where the ball is? Absolutely. Does that show travel?
It does not. Which means that, for at least the next two years, the Dolphins are destined to be contenders for a quick postseason exit, not contenders for a championship.
