Miami Dolphins have little reason to rush Tua Tagovailoa
The Miami Dolphins are in an enviable position. After years of wandering through the quarterback wilderness following Dan Marino’s retirement, the Dolphins appear to have finally found their heir in Tua Tagovailoa. Drafted with the No. 5 overall pick in April’s NFL Draft, Tagovailoa is a left-handed wunderkind, with the only concern being his health.
However, Miami has the perfect scenario to bring Tua Tagovailoa along slowly. He will be given time as he continues to mend from a dislocated and fractured hip suffered in November.
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The Miami Dolphins have journeyman quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick to bridge the gap, something he did capably in 2018. When Miami was expected to go winless, Fitzpatrick helped captain the team to a 5-11 mark. This includes five wins in its last nine regular-season games.
On Tuesday, Fitzpatrick — ever the professional — talked about his enthusiasm for Tagovailoa in Miami, but also his desire to stay on the field. Per Eric Wood’s “What’s Next” Podcast, via NFL.com:
“I’m excited because in watching him play at Alabama, he looks like a pretty dynamic talent. Just in meeting him a few times, he seems like an unbelievable kid, great head on his shoulders, says the right things, wants to do the right things, so like — for me — I’m his biggest cheerleader right now, but I also want to be out there playing. I also want to be on the field because that’s why I’m still doing it, because I still enjoy the game.”
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Should Tagovailoa show up to training camp — assuming there is such a thing with COVID-19 still raging in the United States — and be healthy, perhaps he gets the job right away. Fitzpatrick is the ideal mentor, holding a clipboard and helping him throughout the game on the sideline.
Then again, if Tagovailoa struggles to pick up the playbook quickly or simply needs more time to feel 100 percent, Fitzpatrick can helm the ship for a while, helping Miami continue to transition out of its rebuilding phase.
There’s little pressure on the Dolphins o begin winning now. Most understand head coach Brian Flores and general manager Chris Grier are in this for the long game, something going well beyond this season’s win-loss record.
In that vein, waiting on Tagovailoa isn’t all that tough to do. Even if visions of him dominating for 15 years on South Beach is dancing in the heads of most fans.
