Once upon a time, Tua Tagovailoa passed for 469 yards and six touchdowns, leading his team to victory.
No, not when he was a star at Alabama. He did throw six TD passes in a win against Mississippi in 2019 while with the Tide, but his left arm accounted for “only” 418 yards in that one.
We’re not talking about at Saint Louis School, either, where he set all kinds of records.
Yes, Tagovailoa had many high school and college games where he put up big numbers in big wins.
But the once upon a time we’re talking about is Tagovailoa’s what-have-you-done-for-me-lately … as the starting quarterback for the Miami Dolphins. He was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week for his work in the 42-38 comeback win over the Baltimore Ravens last week.
“It wasn’t just that he racked up big numbers either,” wrote Yahoo! columnist Dan Wetzel. “He conveyed a calm and a sense of control over the game that speaks to this being more than just a hot day against a weak defense.”
If that’s true, it bodes well for Miami as it takes on Buffalo today in a battle of AFC East unbeatens. And, maybe even beyond, as those who don’t consider him a bust think that fourth quarter could be the turning point of Tagovailoa’s career.
The third-year pro was at his best during the fourth quarter against the Ravens to lead the Fins back from a 21-point deficit.
So, of course, some of the so-called analysts out there focused on his not-so-great first three quarters, during which he threw two interceptions and was sacked.
Even his successful play was criticized. Here’s a typical example of Tua hate:
I’m still not giving credit to Tua that defense was horrible!! Baltimore has issues
That one’s anonymous, but you can find plenty of media naysayers still holding their ground, especially if you listen to sports radio. Keyshawn Johnson on ESPN quickly transitioned to “but can they win the Super Bowl?” mode.
“They’re saying his touchdowns came off of broken coverage,” Arnold Feliciano said. “Well, that’s a part of their offense, to create broken coverage.”
Feliciano was my boss at the Gainesville Sun 23 years ago. He’s one of the best human beings I’ve ever known. He would fit in great here, once he learned that those flowered button-downs he would wear on occasion are called aloha shirts, not Hawaiian shirts.
He’s from south Florida, and loves the Dolphins so much he named his son Dante, in honor of Dan Marino.
“I can only speak as a fan, because I never covered him,” Feliciano said of Tagovailoa. “I don’t understand it. They say he’s got a rag arm, but who cares? He’s the starting quarterback of a pretty good team, and he’s got some pretty good wins.
“The pundits talk about stuff that doesn’t matter, then the fans get caught up in the argument,” he said. “They just want something to talk about, and it gets clicks. Tua has to just let it go.”
Tagovailoa has been pretty good at that, even when he was a kid at Saint Louis.
“He does a great job, not worrying about what the press, or anyone else, says,” said Ron Lee, the Saint Louis head coach who was offensive coordinator when Tagovailoa was there. “That’s the thing, he’s handled all of that stuff well, going back to high school.”
Lee is bewildered why there wasn’t more positive coverage of Tagovailoa shredding Baltimore.
“After the Ravens game, there was very little I read about his accomplishment,” he said. “What I read about was they wrote about the Ravens and New England being bad. What about what Tua did? What about what Miami did? I don’t get it.”
I think two things are in play here:
1) Good old-fashioned schadenfreude. When the fifth pick of the NFL Draft isn’t an instant success, he’s going to get ripped apart … especially when he comes from Alabama and Saint Louis, two programs that many fans love to hate, simply because they have such long histories of championships. It doesn’t matter that Marcus Mariota and Tua Tagovailoa are kind and courteous young men; there’s a lot of jealousy of their schools in the football world.
2) Chasing ghosts. Any quarterback who plays for Miami will always be compared to Bob Griese and Marino. The Dolphins haven’t won a Super Bowl since Griese was behind center in 1974, and last appeared in one when Marino was the QB in 1985.
My favorite anonymous message board take, apparently directed to those who jumped back onto the We Love Tua bandwagon:
“We welcome you back in the tent. Just no beer for you.”
My favorite Tua take that came from media was this from Sports Illustrated’s Alex Prewett before the season started.
“Tua Tagovailoa has one ring, from the night he came off the bench as a true freshman to lead Alabama past Georgia in the January 2018 national title game. The circus of discourse regarding his play has added two more.”
