The Miami Dolphins signed Tua Tagovailoa to a big contract extension worth over $200 million this offseason, an investment that seemingly justifies the franchise's choice to pick Tagovailoa fifth overall in 2020. HIs career got off to a rocky start but once Mike McDaniel was hired as head coach, the quarterback's trajectory changed completely. Tagovailoa is now seen as one of the NFL's top young arms and the centerpiece of the league's most explosive offense.
Which would probably be shocking to hear from those who watched Tagovailoa struggle under McDaniel's predecessor, Brian Flores. Flores was hired as head coach of the Dolphins in 2019 and plauged Tagovailoa's development with inconsistent playing time and regular reports of internal strife. He was fired following the 2021 season, opening the door for McDaniel.
In an interview that aired on Monday's edition of the Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, Tagovailoa gave a shockingly blunt quote comparing his experience under Flores vs. McDaniel.
"To put it in simplest terms," Tagovailoa said, "if you woke up every morning and I told you, you suck at what you did, that you don’t belong doing what you do, that you shouldn’t be here, that this guy should be here, that you haven’t earned this right. And then you have somebody else come in and tell you, 'Dude. You are the best fit for this. You are accurate, you are the best whatever, you are this, you are that.' How would it make you feel listening to one or the other?
You hear it— regardless of what it is, the good or the bad— you hear it more and more, you start to actually believe that. I don't care who you are. You could be the president of the United States. You have a terrible person that's telling you things that you don't want to hear, or that you probably shouldn't be hearing, you're going to start to believe that about yourself. That's sort of what ended up happening and it's been two years of training that out of, not just me, but a couple of the guys as well who have been here since my rookie year all the way 'till now."
“If you woke up every morning and I told you that you suck at what you did, that you don’t belong, that you shouldn’t be here, that you haven’t earned this…
— Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (@LeBatardShow) August 19, 2024
and then someone come and tells you, ‘You are the best fit for this…How you that make you feel?”
- @Tua describes the… pic.twitter.com/bBHI6IsVlj
Tagovailoa's message may not surprise many NFL fans given all that was reported about the way Flores coached the Dolphins and the gigantic leap Tagovailoa made once he was replaced by McDaniel. In his final season under Flores, he played 13 games and threw for 2,653 yards along with 16 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. In his first season under McDaniel, the former Alabama superstar totaled 3,548 yards along with 25 touchdowns and eight picks while leading the league in categories like touchdown percentage, yards per attempt, and yards per completion.
It wasn't all due to the power of positive reinforcement; McDaniel's scheme and the additions of speedsters Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle played quite a large role in Tagovailoa's improvement as well. But he went from toeing bust territory to leading the entire NFL in passing yards in 2023. The coaching change may have very well saved his career.
The Dolphins seem to be set for a long time with the Tagovailoa-McDaniel pairing. And it sure seems like the quarterback is grateful things turned out this way.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Tua Tagovailoa Gives Brutally Honest Quote Comparing Brian Flores and Mike McDaniel .
