Network analysts tee off on Tua’s shortcomings
Tua Tagovailoa’s play — and the Dolphins’ decision to yank him during Saturday’s game — elicited the usual instant analysis from NFL pundits in recent days.
But the most eyebrowraising comment about the Dolphins’ rookie quarterback was offered by former Cleveland general manager Mike Lombardi a few days before the Dolphins-Raiders game.
“What I see with Tua is what I thought I saw at Alabama; I worry about having elite skills,” Lombardi — who was an executive with the Eagles and Raiders and now a podcaster and a writer for The Athletic — told WQAM’s Joe Rose Show. “I don’t see elite skills, I don’t see an elite arm and I don’t see an elite athlete. I see an elite instinctive player. I see somebody who’s accurate on a lot of short throws.
“I see somebody that can operate within a readoption offense effectively, but I think if it becomes a drop back pass game and he has to stay back in the pocket I see a small player who plays smaller when he has to play behind the center.”
After Saturday’s game, when Tagovailoa completed 17 passes for just 94 yards, Pro Football Talk’s
Mike Florio tweeted: “If I’m a Dolphins fan, my happiness is tempered by a nagging concern that the team should have drafted
Justin Herbert.”
Several former longtime NFL starters with media jobs wondered why coach
Brian Flores is starting Tagovailoa over Ryan Fitzpatrick against Buffalo.
“If I’m the head coach, I’m going to start Fitzpatrick,” former All-Pro tight
end Tony Gonzalez said in Fox’s studio. “I know as a player on that team, I would be like, ‘Let’s put Fitzpatrick in there. He’s a 16-year vet. He comes in and lights it up.’ I can see where Flores is going with that: ‘Tua go in there. If it’s not working out, we’ve got Mariano Rivera on the bench.’ [But] as a player, I would say put Fitzpatrick in.”
Former NFL offensive lineman Geoff Schwartz, now an analyst for Sirius XM, said: “It seems like most, maybe all, former players on Twitter seem confused with the QB rotation in Miami. Wonder what the locker room truly feels about it. Not what they’d say to the media. If I was on that [offensive line] and wanted to win now, I’d be hopeful Fitz was the starter.”
ESPN’s Matt Hasselbeck, the former Pro Bowl quarterback, said: “There is no doubt in my mind Ryan Fitzpatrick would give them a better chance to win next week.”
But Hasselbeck’s brother, fellow ESPN analyst Tim Hasselbeck, concurred with Flores starting Tagovailoa against Buffalo and added: “It’s unconventional, but they’ve managed this as well as
you can. Tua has got a great maturity about it. Fitz has a great perspective about it. They seem to be OK with it and that’s probably the most important part of it.”
One of the biggest issues remains why offensive coordinator Chan Gailey’s play-calling seems much more conservative with Tagovailoa than Fitzpatrick. Gailey hasn’t addressed this specifically.
“I don’t think Tua is bad,” Schwartz tweeted. “But they clearly don’t trust him, and I don’t get it. It’s clear the offense has the ability to move the ball when they open up the offense. It feels like the front office wants Tua to play, but in the end Flores is trying to make the playoffs.”
Flores and Gailey have suggested previously that they don’t want to use nohuddle all the time, even though Tagovailoa seems to thrive with that approach.
Per Dolphins podcaster Chris Kouffman, Tagovailoa this season is 32 of 41 for 344 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions (102 passer rating) with two sacks when operating out of the no-huddle.
When he plays with an empty backfield (no running backs lined up behind him), he’s 34 of 42 for 281 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions, a 102 rating, with five sacks.
Keep in mind that Tagovailoa’s performance has been much better than the rookie performances of Eli Manning, Peyton Manning, John Elway, Buffalo’s Josh Allen and others.
As a rookie, Allen had 10 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, a 67.9 rating and a 52.8 percent completion percentage.
Tagovailoa has 10 touchdowns, two interceptions, a 93.2 rating and a 65.1 completion percentage.
In Allen’s defense, he averaged 12.3 per completion as a rookie, compared with 9.6 for Tagovailoa.
“We’ve seen [Tagovailoa] against Arizona and the Chiefs play well when the offense was forced to be more open,” Schwartz said. “Something Kurt Warner mentioned often [during the NFL Network cablecast on Saturday] was Tua has to learn what open in the NFL is. He should with more reps.”
THIS AND THAT
The Houston Texans’ first-round draft pick due Miami currently stands third and could end up anywhere from as high as third to as low as ninth.
The pick would be third if Houston loses to Tennessee and Atlanta beats Tampa Bay. If Houston and Atlanta both lose on Sunday, Miami likely would pick third because of a strength of schedule tiebreaker that favors the Texans.
Also, Houston interim coach Romeo Crennel said quarterback Deshaun Watson will play against Tennessee if he’s healthy; Watson said he’s healthy.
Receiver Jakeem Grant will miss Sunday’s game at Buffalo with a high ankle sprain, according to a source. He hopes to return for the playoffs if the Dolphins make it. The Dolphins hope DeVante Parker can return Sunday after missing two games with a hamstring injury.
Pro Football Focus
● said Miami’s three highest-graded players on offense in its win against Las Vegas were running back Myles Gaskin, Fitzpatrick and Grant (who played 19 offensive snaps before his injury). PFF gave the offense’s worst grades to running back
Salvon Ahmed and left tackle Austin Jackson.
PFF said Miami’s three ● highest-graded players on defense on Saturday were defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, cornerback Xavien Howard and linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel. The lowest-graded were safeties Eric Rowe and Bobby McCain.
PFF blamed guard
●
Ereck Flowers, center
Ted Karras and Tagovailoa for the three sacks against Tagovailoa on Saturday.
Rowe had his roughest ● game of the season, allowing 7 of 8 targets to be caught for 120 yards, including 5 of 5 for 120 against Raiders tight end
Darren Waller. Cornerback Byron Jones allowed 3 of 4 completions for 126 yards and a touchdown. Howard was great again, permitting only one reception in four targets for minus one yard.
The NFL scheduled Sunday’s Dolphins-Bills game for 1 p.m., with CBS’ No. 3 team Kevin Harlan and Trent Green on the call. Miami would make the playoffs with a win against Buffalo or a loss by Cleveland (against Pittsburgh) or a loss by Baltimore (at Cincinnati) or a loss by Indianapolis (against Jacksonville).