Miami is expecting a full offseason to help quarterback Tua Tagovailoa progress in his second NFL season, Dolphins general manager Chris Grier said on Wednesday.
“He’s going to take the next step,” Grier said. “The kid’s been a winner everywhere he’s been. Really excited for him, especially to have an offseason under his belt, and I think that will be really important for him.”
In what turned out to be Tagovailoa’s final game at Alabama, the QB sustained a dislocated hip and posterior wall fracture against Mississippi State on Nov. 16, 2019.
Tagovailoa’s recovery from the injury and the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on the NFL’s offseason schedule kept the rookie from getting his first in-person work with the Dolphins’ coaches until reporting for training camp in late July.
“I think coming off the injury last year with no OTAs, no minicamp and being just thrown in right away, that’s a hard transition, especially coming through the rehab part of it he was doing,” Grier said. “He’s healthy now.”
Tagovailoa watched Ryan Fitzpatrick run the Miami offense until getting on the field for the final series in the sixth game on Oct. 18. For the seventh game, the Dolphins switched to Tagovailoa as their starter under center. He started nine of the remaining 10 games, missing one because of a thumb injury.
In his rookie season, Tagovailoa completed 186-of-290 passes for 1,814 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions. He also ran for 109 yards and three touchdowns on 36 carries.
The Dolphins acquired Tagovailoa with the fifth selection in the 2020 NFL Draft. Miami has nine picks in the 2021 NFL Draft, which will be held April 29 through May 1 in Cleveland. The Dolphins hold the sixth, 18th, 36th, 50th, 81st, 102nd, 156th, 208th and 231st selections.
Tagovailoa will be a consideration when the Dolphins make their decisions next week, Grier said.
“I think, especially when you’re picking up where we’re picking, you’re always looking at your team, and Tua’s a big part of that,” Grier said. “And so as we build around what we’re doing, yeah, you’re always looking at: What does your quarterback do best? But you’re also looking at weighing that versus the best players available and what you do for your team, so at the end of the day, it’s always about the team. It’s not about one player, one pick, one person, and you’ve heard (Dolphins coach) Brian (Flores) talk about team-first players that fit right, so for us, it is just looking for the right player, the right person and the right fit for our team as well as the mesh with the quarterback.”
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
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