Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins. (Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports)
New Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel seems to be a big Tua Tagovailoa fan.
For Mike McDaniel to be as successful as he wants to be as a first-time head coach with the Miami Dolphins, he has to get the absolute most out of Tua Tagovailoa.
The Dolphins had their eye on the former San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator for a while now. He comes to South Florida with big plans to get this team turned around. McDaniel hails from the Mike Shanahan coaching tree, one that prioritizes uses the run to open up the pass. This will be a big boost to Tagovailoa’s growth as a franchise quarterback in year three out of Alabama.
Here is McDaniel talking to Tagovailoa over FaceTime on his flight to the Dolphins team facility.
“My job is to coach you, to get all of that greatness out of you.”
New Miami Dolphins HC Mike McDaniel thinks the world of Tua Tagovailoa
While the team-recorded FaceTime was a bit awkward, it does paint a picture over what the Dolphins will do at the most important position. Tagovailoa will be the starting quarterback and will get every opportunity to prove he is worth a second contract over the next two years, and potentially during the fifth-year option. In short, McDaniel really has no choice but to be all-in.
While any offensive mind could get a second stab at being a head coach, it is a bold move to attach one’s coaching career to a quarterback you did not draft. Then again, McDaniel has been present during the peak years of Jimmy Garoppolo and Matt Ryan before that. If Tagovailoa can become some version of those two passers, then the Dolphins have a real shot of getting over the hump.
McDaniel and Tagovailoa’s rapport will decide if the Dolphins are sinking or swimming this decade.