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The Miami Dolphins have a major decision on their hands.
Of all the four quarterbacks drafted in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, Tua Tagovailoa is the only one who hasn't got a contract extension. Now entering the fifth year of his career, and the final in his rookie deal, the Dolphins must decide whether they'll make Tagovailoa their true franchise quarterback and give him a second contract or let him walk.
It's a difficult decision for many reasons, with Tagovailoa playing at a great level at the start of the season but faltering as the games got harder. There's not 100% confidence that he can take Miami to the Super Bowl, and Colin Cowherd gave his view on the matter: he would not give him a contract on the same tier as the other quarterbacks in the 2020 class, like Joe Burrow or Justin Herbert:
"Lots of rumors around the Dolphins that Tua isn't going to get the bag. He's not getting the Burrow contract and he's not getting the Herbert contract. And this whole "give him the bag" stuff is moronic. There are about six quarterbacks on the planet that I'm gonna give the bag to - it's not Dak, sorry.
"Jordan Love if he has a good September? All right, we'll talk about it. Herbert, yeah. Burrow, yeah. Allen, Lamar, Mahomes, yeah, yeah. But you can win with Tua, he's coachable, he's an adult, good at the podium, smart, effective and accurate. But you've got to contextualize Tua. He's good at home in warm weather against pretty good average teams; he has a losing record on the road and against winning teams. That's who he is."
The Tua Tagovailoa problem: Dolphins have a major decision to make with the quarterback
Tua is in the final year of his rookie contract, and this is the most important decision of Miami's offseason - even more than the draft. In his first four seasons, he showed plenty of flashes, however, he was unable to show the most important thing to a quarterback: consistency.
The Dolphins can't just give up on Tua Tagovailoa as they don't have better options at the moment; at the same time, they can't simply make him the highest-paid new quarterback in the league, even with the major salary cap increase that NFL teams weren't expecting.
Miami has a clear risk on its hands: compromising the salary cap without security in the most important position of the game. Don't be shocked by the outcome, whatever it is.
