Tua Tagovailoa has been on fire for the Miami Dolphins, and it’s all thanks to his understanding with coach Mike McDaniel.
Following their 34-19 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, the Dolphins have now gone two games without a punt or a turnover. Tagovailoa has been the quarterback in both of those games, which, by the sounds of it, is no coincidence.
Speaking after the win, McDaniel credited Tagovailoa with taking a “gigantic step” forward in recent weeks and praised the 26-year-old’s patience and tactical precision. “He’s got control of the emotional piece of the football game,” McDaniel, 41, told reporters.
“He isn’t trying to force things necessarily, isn’t trying to make plays when they’re not there. But [he’s] also finding ways to extend plays and making more plays than maybe the play that I gave him enabled him to do.”
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Tagovailoa echoed his coach’s sentiments. “I think what’s been different with the quarterback play is now not trying to force things down the field if it’s not there,” he said.
“Taking the checkdowns, allowing our runners in space to go get first downs. Hopefully, they can break a tackle. You can use that also as essentially a run play, if you look at it in that sense. We like our matchups with our guys in space, so that’s what I would attest to today’s performance for us offensively.”
He also joked that Dolphins punter Jake Bailey had been getting a free ride, given how little his kicking has been used this month. “Free money for him,” Tagovailoa laughed. “Good for him. It’s great for him. We took a picture, had zero punts. Happy for him. You know, it should signify that, for the most part, things are going well offensively.”
Miami head coach Mike McDaniel and Tua Tagovailoa are in agreement about Miami’s offensive strategy
And they are going well. In their last four outings, the Dolphins have averaged 27.75 points per game. By contrast, they averaged just 10 points per game in the four games prior.
They’re currently second in the AFC Eastern Conference, a place behind the Buffalo Bills who have won nine of their 11 matches so far. The Dolphins have won just four times this season, but with two wins on the bounce, there’s a real sense that things are moving in the right direction.
