How much will the Dolphins pay Tua Tagovailoa on a long-term deal?
Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa said this week that he believes a long-term deal will happen.
It's one thing for the team and the player to want to extend the relationship beyond 2024. It's another thing for the team and the player to strike a deal as to the value and structure of the contract.
Where does Tua land on the veteran quarterback spectrum? Currently, the top of the market is Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, at $55 million per year. At the other end of the range of veteran quarterbacks is Jimmy Garoppolo, at $24.25 million.
Many are clustered in the $35 million to $45 million range. Some of those will be getting new deals and higher annual averages, soon.
The right balance for the Dolphins could be to craft a long-term deal that carries a significant APY, but that is structured in a way that gives the Dolphins a way out after one or two years. That protects the team against Tua regressing, and it also gives them the ability to keep him if he continues to play at a high level.
Other teams have used that. The Geno Smith contract in Seattle is a year-to-year arrangement. The Giants can move on from Daniel Jones after the 2024 season. The Saints can do the same with Derek Carr.
Currently, Tua is due to make $23.171 million in 2024. The Dolphins could, if they want, keep him at that number and then make a long-term decision after that. They could use the franchise tag in 2025.
At some point, however, he deserves multi-year security. He arguably deserves it now. The way to do it could be to give him something that would provide two years of security at a rate in the range of $40 million, with the ability to either move on after 2025 or to continue the arrangement at a much higher commitment.
Here's the other thing to remember when it comes to any quarterback contract. The salary cap keeps going up and up. Currently, $40 million per year for a quarterback isn't particularly daunting. The top of the market will soon hit $60 million, and it will keep going higher.
However it goes, there will be a reported value of Tua's next deal and also the truth — and the truth in this case quite possibly will give Miami the flexibility to make a change after the first year or two, if Miami decides a change is warranted.
