Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa made the first Pro Bowl of his career in 2023 and made it through a full season healthy for the first time in four years.
Although he can still stand to benefit from fine-tuning a few things in his game and take the next step in performing against top opponents and defenses, especially late in the season, Tagovailoa by and large accomplished what he needed to earn the organization’s trust as the long-term answer at quarterback.
Nonetheless, some pundits have tried to link the Dolphins to quarterbacks in the 2024 NFL draft. While top incoming rookie passers Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye and J.J. McCarthy figure to be long gone by Miami’s first selection at No. 21, some outsiders have opined the franchise should take a chance on Washington left-handed quarterback Michael Penix Jr.
Those takes, however, appear not to align with the mindset of the organization. The Dolphins seem to have their sights set more so on extending Tagovailoa’s contract with the team before he goes into the fifth-year-option season on his rookie deal, rather than finding a young replacement for him.
“We’ve been in communication since the offseason began,” Dolphins general manager Chris Grier said Feb. 28 at the NFL scouting combine. “Our goal is to try and get something done. (Agent) Ryan Williams has been great. Tua has been great. We’ll see. There is no timeline on it. At the end of the day, you know how these deals get done. They are complicated deals, and we’re building a team through free agency as well. We’ll work through it and see if we can get something done.”
The two sides appear committed to getting a deal done, and coach Mike McDaniel said at last week’s annual league meeting he expects Tagovailoa to be with the team during offseason workouts amid negotiations. The greater question becomes how much Tagovailoa will get paid, as he and his representation may be pushing for an average of upward of $50 million per season, putting him up there with the NFL’s top contracts. Before any extension, Tagovailoa is slated to count for $23.17 million against the 2024 salary cap.
For what it’s worth, a Monday report from Bleacher Report listed six NFL teams in communication or setting up a visit with Penix, none of which were the Dolphins.
Tagovailoa led the NFL with 4,624 passing yards in 2023. He completed 69.3 percent of passes to throw 29 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in 17 regular-season games. All were career highs. Yes, even the interceptions, as he can stand to cut back on turnovers from last season while building on his successes in other areas, which included a consistent deep ball that led to a number of long touchdowns through the air to wide receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.
Even if the Dolphins weren’t looking for a new starting quarterback in the near future, they also have two backups under contract for 2024 in veteran Mike White and third-year quarterback Skylar Thompson.
Here’s where one scenario could arise where the Dolphins become inclined to bring in a quarterback from the outside: If they move on from either White or Thompson.
White is set to account for $5.2 million against the cap. If Miami wanted to cut him, it would take on $1.7 million of that in dead cap but could net $3.5 million in savings. Thompson and his cap hit that’s a nudge over $1 million could easily be trimmed, as well, should the team decide to cut ties with the 2022 seventh-round draft pick.
The two competed for No. 2 quarterback duties last offseason and training camp, and White won it out. Thompson was inactive for every game but available as an emergency third quarterback if needed.
But the Dolphins could very well be pleased with both backups. They just never needed either one to play meaningful snaps because Tagovailoa didn’t sustain any injury that kept him off the field. White appeared in six games, throwing six passes, and Thompson never saw action.
With three quarterbacks on the roster, if Miami sticks with all, the team may simply bring in an extra training camp arm as a fourth quarterback that gets a shot to prove himself but ultimately gets cut before the season or is kept on the practice squad.
