Three of Tagovailoa’s biggest critics change their tune. And who says he’s the NFL’s MVP

Tua Tagovailoa told NBC’s Maria Taylor recently that when it comes to handling criticism: “I take receipts. Whatever I can use as fuel for myself, I will.”

Any complete list of receipts presumably includes NBC’s Chris Simms and ESPN’s Keyshawn Johnson, among the most prominent Tagovailoa skeptics with national platforms.

In the spring, Simms ranked Tagovailoa 29th among all NFL quarterbacks, behind Marcus Mariota, Mitchell Trubisky, Jameis Winston, Zach Wilson, Carson Wentz, Baker Mayfield and several others whose 2022 work doesn’t remotely measure up to the Dolphins quarterback’s performance.

For Dolphins fans, Simms’ absurdly low Tagovailoa ranking would be the quintessential tweet for @OldTakesExposed, an account with 611,000 followers that playfully mocks opinions or facts that seem comically misguided months later.

Simms - who appeared in 23 NFL games and started 16, for Tampa Bay and Denver - famously said last December that Saints jack-of-all-trades Taysom Hill is “every bit as accurate as Tua. The whole world can throw the ball 5 yards down the middle. You don’t need to draft a quarterback at No. 5 in the draft to throw the ball 5 or 6 yards over the middle or like [NFL defensive back] Logan Ryan said, run to the left and throw the ball 1 yard into the flat. So idiots on Twitter, shut up.”

Johnson, meanwhile, ridiculed colleague Dan Orlovsky for his high praise for Tagovailoa in September.

Fast forward two months, and both Simms and Johnson have changed their tune. So has ESPN’s Mike Tannenbaum, who predicted in August that Tagovailoa might be benched this season.

Simms’ opinion now that Tagovailoa is leading the league in passer rating at 115.9?

“They’ve got answers for everything [and this offense] fits Tua’s skillset,” he said. “He’s got a quick release, he’s smart, accurate, real aggressive, a good athlete. It’s the ‘Greatest Show on Grass’ right now…Weapons everywhere. Tua is like a point guard out there.”

Johnson - a former three-time Pro Bowl receiver - said in August that “I’m not sold on Tua and I know the Miami Dolphins aren’t sold on Tua.”

Johnson has had an about-face, asserting this past week that Tagovailoa has become the Dolphins’ most valuable player.

“Tua has come a long way,” Johnson said. “Very accurate. Without him in the lineup, [Tyreek Hill] is a different receiver. Tua is more important to what they’re doing [than Hill and Jaylen Waddle]. They looked like home run hitters as soon as he came back. He gets the ball out fast.

“Two years ago, he was holding that thing, patting that thing, putting it to sleep. It’s a totally different guy now.

“Does that mean it’s going to sustain into the cold weather? .. I don’t know. But right now, it looks pretty damn good.... I’m all in. I like him.”

During the summer, former Dolphins executive Tannenbaum called Tagovailoa the third-best quarterback in the division, behind Josh Allen and Mac Jones, and said: “I don’t think he’ll ever prove worthy of being a top-five pick. He has athletic deficiencies.”

But Tannenbaum said this week on Max Kellerman’s ESPN show that if he had to pick between Tagovailoa and Philadelphia’s Jalen Hurts, “I’m going with Tua for two reasons. I love how he gets the ball down the field, really has improved his downfield accuracy and number two, I gotta go with what Nick Saban said. He had both Tua and Jalen Hurts. He might be the greatest college coach in the history of our game and he picked Tua. Both good young quarterbacks. Both have improved.”

Tannenbaum politely declined to discuss Tagovailoa off the air.

The fact that Simms, Johnson and Tannenbaum wildly underestimated Tagovailoa isn’t a big deal; opinions are the lifeblood of the industry. But it seemingly is a big deal to Tagovailoa supporters, some of whom take particular pleasure in shining an unforgiving spotlight on his biggest critics, and then publicly shaming them to admit their mistake.

It’s a dynamic unlike anything I’ve seen with any local athlete during the social media era and speaks to Tagovailoa’s immense popularity in South Florida.

And if there’s a time for Tagovailoa’s biggest supporters to gloat, now would be it.

As NFL Network’s James Palmer noted, Tagovailoa is on pace to become the fourth QB in NFL history to attempt at least 400 passes, average at least 9 yards per attempt and produce a passer rating of 115 or better in a single season.

Each of the previous three won the MVP award: Payton Manning in 2004, Aaron Rodgers in 2011 and Matt Ryan in 2016.

MORE FEEDBACK

Some other Tagovailoa and Dolphins feedback this week:

▪ NBC’s Tony Dungy called Tagovailoa the midseason MVP: “They are 6-0 when he plays the entire game and 0-3 when he doesn’t. I think that demonstrates some value.

“They’re doing what suits his makeup and what he does well, and it’s awesome to see. They’ve got a lot of weapons, but he is playing great football, making good throws, and putting the ball where it needs to be…Tua is playing some of the best quarterback in the NFL. Incredible.”

▪ NBC’s Jason Garrett: “As I’m watching them, it feels like that old Rams team. So fast and they make so many plays, and Tua is dynamic.”

▪ ESPN’s Louis Riddick, who said he also would pick Tagovailoa over Hurts: “Tua could always throw the deep ball. Just pull out his film at Alabama. He got a bad rap, people saying he had a popcorn arm, he can’t throw it down the field. He’s making people look real bad right now, real bad. This kid could always play.”

▪ ESPN’s Rex Ryan said Miami is “absolutely” a legitimate Super Bowl team because “nobody can stop this team. Their weapons with Tyreek Hill, Waddle. Now you’ve got a guy that can pound the ball inside with Jeff Wilson that’s kind of an under the radar trade. Now you have two pass rushers who can close it out [with] Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb.”

▪ ESPN’s Ryan Clark said the Dolphins can win in cold weather sites in January “because the one thing that Waddle, Wilson, Raheem Mostert, Tyreek Hill can do is yards after the catch. This isn’t a team that you have to continually push the football down the field.

“You can get it into their hands. We are seeing the creativity of Mike McDaniel presnap and post snap come to fruition…. This is a team that can score against anyone. It’s going to be whether this defense can start getting pressure without bringing extra men.”

▪ ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky: “He’s got the best eyes in the NFL right now, the way he moves defenses.”

INJURY REPORT

The Dolphins listed one player out for Sunday’s game against Cleveland -- tight end Hunter Long, due to concussion protocol and illness.

Four players were listed as questionable: left tackle Terron Armstead (toe), backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater (knee), tight end Tanner Conner (knee) and tackle Austin Jackson (ankle/calf). It would be surprising if Armstead doesn’t play.

Meanwhile, the Browns ruled out linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (knee) and tight end David Njoku (ankle).

Here’s my Friday piece with news from Mike McDaniel on Austin Jackson and other topics.

Here’s the latest of my conversations with ‘72 Dolphins to commemorate the 50th anniversary of perfection; in this one, Mercury Morris had a lot of interesting things to say.