5 Ways Tua Tagovailoa can earn that $50 million annual Dolphins contract
MIAMI GARDENS — If and when Tua Tagovailoa signs that contract worth $50 million per season or more, there are going to be increased expectations and pressures.
Tua seems the ideal personality to manage those realities.
The Dolphins quarterback is calm, at peace and humble.
But reality is reality. And Dolphins fans will no longer say, "I can't believe Tua didn't ..."
They're be saying, and posting on X, "I can't believe we're paying Tua $50 million and ..."
That's the way of the world.
That's the cold, harsh business of the world of football.
All professional athletes are judged through the prism of their performance, juxtaposed with their salary.
Ask Daniel Jones. It's not his fault the Giants were willing to pay him $40 million a season.
But we digress.
No, Tua is not Daniel Jones
Tua is not Daniel Jones.
Tua is a much better player and will be paid much more.
Tua's deal figures to come in around that of Detroit's Jared Goff, who is similarly poised, accurate and on-time. Neither quarterback has a monster arm or extraordinary mobility. Goff recently signed a 4-year, $212,000,000 contract, including a $73M signing bonus, $170.6M guaranteed and an average annual salary of $53M.
Goff already has led the Rams to a Super Bowl and the Lions to just one touchdown shy of their own Super Bowl appearance.
The Dolphins are going to pay Tua - everyone agrees - because in 2019 they "Tanked for Tua" and even though they didn't "earn" the first pick, they finished poorly enough to draft, well, Tua.
Dolphins will pay Tua because he fits Dolphins
And Tua has improved every year. And Tua is a good fit for Mike McDaniel's offense.
And Tyreek Hill likes Tua. And the fans - most of them - love Tua.
And Tua has already led the NFL in passer rating and passing yards.
And Tua loves South Florida. And so on and so on and so on.
But, again, once Tua puts that pen to paper, Tua is no longer just Miami's first-round quarterback.
Tua is a $50 million man. And perceptions will change.
But there is opportunity here.
And so we present:
Five ways Tua can live up to the $50 million annual contract
Stay healthy while extending plays
Tua played all 17 regular-games in 2022 and if he hadn't, Miami might very well make Tua wait for a new deal, knowing they could always franchise tag him for 2025.
Tua bulked up to protect himself before last season and it worked. He also delivered the ball quickly and used a jiu-jitsu roll to escape big hits at times.
But the Dolphins want Tua to extend some more plays in 2024. And with that in mind, he's worked with a private quarterback coach and also slimmed down.
Win in December and January and the cold
Tua is 24-9 as a starter in September, October and November, according to Pro Football Reference.
And Tua is only 10-11 in December and January, including a playoff loss at Kansas City in January.
Tua's passer rating decreases from September to January in this pattern: 110.3, 100.1, 105.5, 91.3, 65.0.
The Dolphins need to win playoff games at Kansas City, Buffalo, Baltimore, Cleveland, etc., and so Tua is simply going to have to be better in the cold.
Miami plays potential cold-weather regular-season games at Buffalo, Green Bay, Cleveland and the Jets this season. The Dolphins and Tua would sign up for 3-1 in those games right now, maybe even 2-2.
Continue to mature as a leader
Tua is never going to be a very vocal leader.
But teammates say he spoke up more in 2023, his fourth NFL season.
Tua is 26, now married and a father of two.
He's more comfortable with who he is and with his teammates.
It's important that the quarterback - loud and out-spoken or not - hold teammates accountable in his own way. Tua seems to have moved in that direction.
Beat good teams with memorable plays
It's obvious that most NFL teams will struggle more against very good opponents than bad or average ones.
But the difference has really been stark for Tua and the Dolphins. The Dolphins posted a regular-season record of 1-5 against playoff teams during the 2023 season.
Of course, they then lost to Kansas City in the playoffs.
Miami had a point differential of -91 in its six regular-season games against playoff teams.
Tua had a passer rating of 84.1 against playoff teams and 110.8 against non-playoff teams.
McDaniel has taken some of the blame for the results against the best teams.
But once he gets that dough, Tua will be counted on to raise his team to victory in memorable fashion, against a few memorable opponents. And in the near future.
Win playoff games
The Dolphins have had 25 quarterbacks start since their last playoff win.
That's a bit embarrassing, huh?
Well, Tua gives them the best chance to win playoff games since ... Jay Fiedler?
Tua's legacy will be defined by if he is the quarterback who gives owner Stephen Ross his first playoff win.
And his legacy will be defined by if he can win more playoff games after that.
Draft classmate Joe Burrow has led the Bengals to a Super Bowl. Burrow makes $55 million per season.
And, yes, all future discussions of Burrow's performance will be through that prism.
That's just how it goes.
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Joe Schad is a journalist covering the Miami Dolphins and the NFL at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on Instagram and on X @schadjoe. Sign up for Joe's free weekly Dolphins Pulse Newsletter. Help support our work by subscribing today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Tua Tagovailoa contract: 5 ways he can earn that massive contract
