Tua on game-clinching drive: It’s important to ‘not poop the bed’
MIAMI GARDENS — The NFL has been waiting for this for more than two decades.
Someone to come along who has the New England Patriots’ number. Whose presence alone puts the Patriots at a disadvantage … Kind of like the Patriots had over the entire league for about 20 years.
Someone like Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who earlier this season became the first quarterback to win his first five games against a Bill Belichickcoached team, and on Sunday pushed that record to 6-0 against Belichick and the Patriots after a 31-17 victory.
“It’s tough to sweep any team in your division,” Tua said, before adding, “a Bill Belichick-coached team is tough to beat anytime, anyplace, anywhere.”
Really? Because the man who has never lost to the coach who was in half of all the Super Bowls played in an 18year span, winning six, has sure made it look easy.
“It’s tough,” he repeated when reminded of his success. “If you look at a lot of the games, none of them were just runaway games. They were almost all to the end. To me, those are always tough games.
“If you turn the ball over the way I have, makes it a tough game. And you keep those guys in that game.”
More on Tua’s turnovers later. But the story Sunday, and the reason the Dolphins avoided what would have been a concerning loss to a team it has clearly surpassed in talent, was because of Tua’s production and poise in the final quarter.
The 2-6 Patriots did make the Dolphins work for this win. In fact, this suddenly energized fan base was a bit uneasy after Miami found itself in a one-score game with 8:30 play.
But that’s when Tua and the Dolphins’ offense took control, frustrating the Patriots with a 10-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a wide-open Jaylen Waddle sealing the game on a 31-yard catch and run. It also included a clutch third-and-9 conversion on a pass to Tyreek Hill.
Tyreek Hill’s motion fooled Patriots defense
While the game-clinching TD to Waddle will make all the highlights Tagovailoa admitted it was a miscommunication by the Patriots defense who may have been fooled by Miami sending Hill in motion to the opposite side of the throw - Dolphins coach
Mike McDaniel gushed over the thirddown conversation in which Hill leaped to catch the ball without a yard to spare.
“For them to make that play, those are what big-time players do in bigtime games,” McDaniel said after explaining how Hill adjusted to the Patriots defense by speeding up the route.
“Tua was locked in, didn’t have ebbs and flows. He was able to make plays after being frustrated, which is one of the reasons he’s had that much more success this season. He’s learned in a such a short period of time how to be critical of yourself but not handcuff yourself as well because you’re self lashing for a series or a quarter.”
No self lashing Sunday. Especially against the league’s biggest bully for two decades. The Dolphins won six games total against New England the 10 years prior to Tagovailoa arriving in 2020 from Hawaii by way of Alabama. Of course, some guy named Brady may have had something to do with that.
The Dolphins now have won 6-of-7 against the Patriots, their loss on New Year’s Day 2023 came with Tagovailoa sidelined after suffering a concussion one week earlier. And at 6-2 they no longer have to worry about the Patriots as they enter the second half of the season.
When’s the last time that was said. Certainly not this century.
Tua was solid while throwing for 324 yards and setting his season high of 30 completions in 45 attempts, which equalled the most he’s tossed this year. He had three touchdown passes, one each to Waddle, Hill and Cedrick Wilson.
He did help keep the Patriots in the game with an interception and a botched exchange on the first play of the second half that led to 10 New England points. But he also kept them from truly believing whenever they gained some momentum.
“It’s important for us offensively when it’s a one-score game to go out and basically not poop the bed if you will, to go out and execute on a high level, “Tagovailoa said, chuckling at his choice of words.
“We want to always end the game with the ball if we can. But in that scenario we’re looking for points as well. Any which way we could do that, that’s what we’re trying to do.”