It’s time for Miami Dolphins QB Tua to demand the respect denied him, take what is his | Opinion
It was silly, but telling, that back-and-forth between Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and ESPN football analyst Ryan Clark a couple of week ago.
It spoke in some volume about what drives Tagovailoa entering his fourth NFL season, and how much it is driving him.
It underlined what is most important to Tagovailoa — and what has been denied him his entire young career.
Respect.
“I come from a Samoan family,”he reminded during the preseason. “Respect is everything.”
The young man whose given first name is Tuanigamanuolepola is still fighting to earn what he lacks but must have as the Dolphins open their 58th season Sunday afternoon at the Los Angeles Chargers.
ESPN’s Clark, himself a former player, blasted Tagovailoa on “NFL Live.” He said, “Let me tell you what he wasn’t doing: He wasn’t in the gym, I’ll bet you that. He might spend a lot of time in the tattoo parlor. He was not at the dinner table eating what the nutritionist had advised. He looks ‘happy.’ He’s thick.”
Tagovaloa, 25, is 10 pounds heavier (at 227) through noticeable muscle buildup, via strength training and work with a nutritionist. He has learned jiu-jitsu to learn to fall from more safely and help prevent injuries — especially further concussions. Nobody on the Dolphins has worked harder preparing for this season. Clark spoke from willful ignorance. His “apology” a few days later was weak, in the “If my joking around was received poorly...” category.
The criticism hit a nerve with Tagovailoa, not normally the combative type.
“I’d appreciate it f you kept my name out of your mouth,” he told Miami reporters, as if addressing Clark directly.. “A little easy on that, buddy. We’re pretty tough-minded people and if we need to get scrappy, we can get scrappy. Just sayin’.’”
I believe Tagovailoa’s sharp, seemingly uncharacteristic response was about more than just Clark’s criticism.
I believe it was a buildup and about his entire pro career.
And how fitting Tagovailoa faces the Chargers’ Justin Herbert on Sunday, because the lack of respect began the day both were drafted in 2020 — Tagovailoa fifth overall, then Herbert sixth.
Miami’s guy was smaller, coming off injuries at Alabama. The media consensus was to question when the Fins didn’t pick Herbert, and plenty of Dolfans agreed..
Through three seasons Herbert has a 96.2 passer rating and 2.7-1 TD-INT ratio .to Tagovailoa’s 95.0 and 2.3-1. Herbert has made one Pro Bowl. Tagovailoa has a much better winning percentage, .618 to .510. Edge to Herbert, perhaps, but mostly inconclusive or too early to call. They are 1-1 head to head entering Sunday.
Yet by prevailing perception, Tagovailoa plays from behind, still needing to prove Miami did right by taking him first.
Worse, disrespect of Tagovailoa has come from his own organization.
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross spent the 2021 season chasing available star quarterback Deshaun Watson (despite the dozens of lawsuits against him regarding sexual misconduct during massage sessions). Watson eventually was traded to Cleveland, but not before Ross’ interest because public, and a distraction for the team.
It reached a point where Tagovailoa was asked if he felt wanted by his team.
Awkwardly, after pause, he says, “Well, I don’t not feel wanted.”
This is the same QB who reminds us that, in his Samoan culture, “respect is everything.”
Ross wasn’t done. He turned sights on replacing Tagovailoa with Tom Brady, who was under contract with Tampa Bay at the time. Brady eventually retired, but not before Ross’ pursuit was so obvious (and ham-handed) that it drew punishment from the NFL for tampering, requiring Miami to forfeit its first-round pick in the 2023 Draft.
What other top-five-drafted QB has had to grow his pro career while, behind his back but out in the open, the club owner has already quit on him and is maneuvering to replace him?
No other young QB has had to endure such humiliation and blatant disrespect.
As if to make amends, Miami drafting Jaylen Waddle and then trading for Tyreek Hill finally gave Tagovailoa the weapons to allow his potential to show, and it did last season, when he had a 105.5 QB rating and arguably should have made the Pro Bowl. But he also missed four games with (at least) two concussions.
The durability question was back, bigger than ever, and it is the major “if” attached to the Dolphins’ high hopes for this season.
Weighing the success but also the concussions of his 2022, Miami picked up the fifth-year option on Tagovailoa’s contract but did not engage in talks for a lucrative,long-term extension.
That’s for next year, and will largely depend on this year.
That’s because this season is still about this quarterback proving himself. Was that 100 passer rating a fluke? Can he stay healthy? Can he be the reason Miami wins a playoff game for the first time in 23 years?
Tua Tagvailoa enters the fourth year of his NFL career still fighting for the big money associated with his position but, much more than that, still fighting for what matters most to him — something bigger than football because its importance is rooted in his heritage and culture:
Respect.
