Tua Tagovailoa will have a make-or-break year in Miami. The former Alabama quarterback has been decent for the Dolphins, but he is yet to lead them to the playoffs. The team has been restructured to focus more on the offensive side of the ball, so there's no reason to change that.
The number of passing touchdown passes for Tua and Beckham in their careers is shown in the stat on CBS. OBJ has more 40+ yard passes than Tagovailoa. When a quarterback stat is used to compare a starting quarterback to any other position on the field, it doesn't usually speak highly of him.
That isn't a stat to be proud of, but it shouldn't be a complete indictment of Tua's ability. When Tagovailoa throws to Tyreek Hill 10 or more times per game, I think we will see a change. He is bound to get lucky with at least two of these long passes to Hill.
The Miami Dolphins have a new head coach, Mike McDaniel, who just coached the San Francisco 49ers in the Superbowl. Darrell Bevell is the coach to oversee the quarterbacks. Bevell worked with a young Russell Wilson to help the Seattle Seahawks make two Super Bowl appearances and win one.
Tua and the Dolphins should get better. I'm not saying Miami will win the division. The Buffalo Bills division will be lost for years to come. The Dolphins missed out on the playoffs last year. Tagovailoa passed for 2,663 yards, 16 touchdown, and 10 ints as a starter. All that needs to improve.
During his first two years in the league, Tua has faced a lot of questions about his strength. A perceived less than average arm is one aspect of Tagovailoa's game that continually reappears after every game he plays. There shouldn't be any issues with the weapons he will have this year.
The Miami Dolphins traded for Hill and then snatched the Dallas Cowboys' Cedric Wilson Jr. in free agency. Tua has a former Alabama teammate at wide receiver. There's no reason Tagovailoa shouldn't throw 25 touchdown passes. Tua only played 12 games last season, but if he had played all 17 he wouldn't have reached 3,500 passing yards.
If the Dolphins defense can stay in the middle of the pack, they should be able to compete for a spot in the playoffs. Miami's fate will be determined by what Tua and the offense produce. He showed improvement from year one to two, and now it is time for a big campaign.
Tua was ranked 26th in his first year. Every quarterback in the top 15 posted a QBR of at least 52.3, while Tua was at 49.7. Tagovailoa should be able to jump up into the QBR range with the new offense.
Now that the Dolphins are with their guy, it's time for him to prove them wrong. Tua doesn't need to put up gaudy numbers like Rodgers or Brady, but a substantial improvement and the playoffs will be expected.
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