MarinoEqualsGod
The man, the myth, the legend
This is an article I put together about Tua entering his second season. Please give me your honest feedback, regardless of your view…
apologies to mods if this is not allowed. If it isn’t, please move..
Tua Must Waddle Before He Can Run
After just one season, Tua Tagovailoa is already one of the most polarizing figures in the National Football League. Love him or hate him, the lefty quarterback out of Alabama has a lot to provethis year in his first full season as the starting quarterback for the Miami Dolphins.
New Offense, New Tua
One of the most under-the-radar moves during the NFL’s most recent offseason was the Dolphins replacing 69-year-old Chan Gailey with co-offensive coordinators George Godsey and Eric Studesville. Gailey was brought out of retirement for the 2020 season, specifically because of his repoire with Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, who is no longer with the team. Because of that, it’s no wonder Tua looked less than ideal at times in an offense that wasn’t designed around his strengths, making him the proverbial square peg trying to be fit in a round hole.
Enter Studesville and Godsey, who are nearly two and three decades younger, respectively, than Gailey. Although unproven in his current position, Godsey has already shown chemistry working with Tua at the helm. In what was Tua’s signature game of the 2020 season, a 34-31 come-from-behind win at Arizona, Godsey stepped in for quarterbacks coach Robby Brown, who was sidelined due to COVID-19 protocols, relaying each play into Tua’s headset and serving as the quarterback’s main form of communication.
Tua finished that contest 20-for-28 for 248 yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions, and a season-best quarterback rating of 122.3. That sense of familiarity and chemistry with his play-caller will add to the QB’s improved confidence and command of the offense.
Getting The Band Back Together
On April 29, 2021, the Dolphins continued to add familiar faces around their franchise quarterback, as they selected former Alabama receiver and Tua’s college teammate Jaylen Waddle with the sixth overall selection of the 2021 NFL Draft. Waddle finished his college career with 106 catches for 1,999 yards (18.9 ypr) and 17 touchdowns in just 34 games for the Crimson Tide.
Waddle instantly adds a playmaker to the Dolphins receiving core that they were sorely missing last season. After boasting a wide receiver room that produced some of the lowest average separation yardage in the league last season, Waddle will help as one of the shiftiest and fastest receivers in last April’s draft. The Dolphins could have drafted the bigger Jamar Chase or arguably the best pass catcher Tight End Kyle Pitts, but instead traded down three spots to number six to take the guy they wanted allalong in Waddle, who arguably compliments Tua better than the other two.
Tua’s former college teammate, and now go-to-guy in Miami has wasted no time acclimating himself to the pro game in the South Florida heat, catching several touchdowns from Tua in the early days of Dolphins training camp – a camp that saw Tua throw several consecutive touchdowns without an interception.
In addition to Waddle, the Dolphins this offseason also added speedster Will Fuller to go along with the already established Devante Parker and the speedy Albert Wilson, who returns to the team after opting out of last season due to COVID-19 concerns.
Putting Tua’s Rookie Season In Perspective
Tua finished his rookie campaign with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions while leading his team to a 6-3 record in nine starts. On the surface, you’d think that’s a successful season for a rookie signal caller. When you consider that he accomplished that without the benefit of OTAs or Training Camp, while coming off major hip surgery that would likely have ended the career of a player 20 years earlier, last season was a rousing success.
The same lenient narrative that the National Media is giving to Joe Burrow this year, as he comes off a season-ending injury, was not provided to Tua last season. Additionally, the Dolphins had always planned for Tua’s first start to come in the first game after their bye week, which was changed from week 11 to week six, forcing Tua into action a month or two earlier than expected.
Those aspects, combined with the fact that the Chargers selected Justin Herbert one pick after Tua in the 2020 NFL Draft, en route to winning NFL Rookie of the Year in one of the best statistical seasons by a rookie quarterback, makes Tua’s rookie season seem worse than it really was.
With a full offseason this year, including OTAs and Training Camp, along with a new stable of thoroughbreds at receiver, while being two years removed from major surgery, Tua is ready to explode onto the scene in 2021. He’s still the same National Champion who was at the center of the ‘Tank For Tua’ movement for nearly two years leading up to the 2020 NFL Draft and the Dolphins are banking on their patience being a virtue for years to come.
apologies to mods if this is not allowed. If it isn’t, please move..
Tua Must Waddle Before He Can Run
After just one season, Tua Tagovailoa is already one of the most polarizing figures in the National Football League. Love him or hate him, the lefty quarterback out of Alabama has a lot to provethis year in his first full season as the starting quarterback for the Miami Dolphins.
New Offense, New Tua
One of the most under-the-radar moves during the NFL’s most recent offseason was the Dolphins replacing 69-year-old Chan Gailey with co-offensive coordinators George Godsey and Eric Studesville. Gailey was brought out of retirement for the 2020 season, specifically because of his repoire with Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, who is no longer with the team. Because of that, it’s no wonder Tua looked less than ideal at times in an offense that wasn’t designed around his strengths, making him the proverbial square peg trying to be fit in a round hole.
Enter Studesville and Godsey, who are nearly two and three decades younger, respectively, than Gailey. Although unproven in his current position, Godsey has already shown chemistry working with Tua at the helm. In what was Tua’s signature game of the 2020 season, a 34-31 come-from-behind win at Arizona, Godsey stepped in for quarterbacks coach Robby Brown, who was sidelined due to COVID-19 protocols, relaying each play into Tua’s headset and serving as the quarterback’s main form of communication.
Tua finished that contest 20-for-28 for 248 yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions, and a season-best quarterback rating of 122.3. That sense of familiarity and chemistry with his play-caller will add to the QB’s improved confidence and command of the offense.
Getting The Band Back Together
On April 29, 2021, the Dolphins continued to add familiar faces around their franchise quarterback, as they selected former Alabama receiver and Tua’s college teammate Jaylen Waddle with the sixth overall selection of the 2021 NFL Draft. Waddle finished his college career with 106 catches for 1,999 yards (18.9 ypr) and 17 touchdowns in just 34 games for the Crimson Tide.
Waddle instantly adds a playmaker to the Dolphins receiving core that they were sorely missing last season. After boasting a wide receiver room that produced some of the lowest average separation yardage in the league last season, Waddle will help as one of the shiftiest and fastest receivers in last April’s draft. The Dolphins could have drafted the bigger Jamar Chase or arguably the best pass catcher Tight End Kyle Pitts, but instead traded down three spots to number six to take the guy they wanted allalong in Waddle, who arguably compliments Tua better than the other two.
Tua’s former college teammate, and now go-to-guy in Miami has wasted no time acclimating himself to the pro game in the South Florida heat, catching several touchdowns from Tua in the early days of Dolphins training camp – a camp that saw Tua throw several consecutive touchdowns without an interception.
In addition to Waddle, the Dolphins this offseason also added speedster Will Fuller to go along with the already established Devante Parker and the speedy Albert Wilson, who returns to the team after opting out of last season due to COVID-19 concerns.
Putting Tua’s Rookie Season In Perspective
Tua finished his rookie campaign with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions while leading his team to a 6-3 record in nine starts. On the surface, you’d think that’s a successful season for a rookie signal caller. When you consider that he accomplished that without the benefit of OTAs or Training Camp, while coming off major hip surgery that would likely have ended the career of a player 20 years earlier, last season was a rousing success.
The same lenient narrative that the National Media is giving to Joe Burrow this year, as he comes off a season-ending injury, was not provided to Tua last season. Additionally, the Dolphins had always planned for Tua’s first start to come in the first game after their bye week, which was changed from week 11 to week six, forcing Tua into action a month or two earlier than expected.
Those aspects, combined with the fact that the Chargers selected Justin Herbert one pick after Tua in the 2020 NFL Draft, en route to winning NFL Rookie of the Year in one of the best statistical seasons by a rookie quarterback, makes Tua’s rookie season seem worse than it really was.
With a full offseason this year, including OTAs and Training Camp, along with a new stable of thoroughbreds at receiver, while being two years removed from major surgery, Tua is ready to explode onto the scene in 2021. He’s still the same National Champion who was at the center of the ‘Tank For Tua’ movement for nearly two years leading up to the 2020 NFL Draft and the Dolphins are banking on their patience being a virtue for years to come.
