Advertisement

Tom Brady really ought to get off of Tua Tagovailoa's Dolphins turf | Habib

Hal Habib, Palm Beach Post
·4 min read
33

The headline on this column has probably misled you.

The truth is Tom Brady is onto something, and Tua Tagovailoa would be foolish not to take him up on it.

Brady made waves during an appearance at a tech conference last week in Miami. Seated onstage, he was asked by a moderator if he’d consider playing for the Dolphins. There are several ways to handle this question. You can say yes. You can say no. Or, you can do what any veteran of 23 NFL seasons (especially in New England) is adept at doing: throw out a word salad and hope nobody recognizes that you said nothing.

Brady chose Option 3, which, as you’ll see in a minute, is far closer to saying yes than no.

So what is Tagovailoa to do?

Send a cease-and-desist order. The kind Brady is well aware of.

Analyst confident Dolphins can land talent at No. 51, and here are 3 prospects he likes

How to watch 2023 NFL Draft, when Dolphins pick, first-round order and much more

Concussion expert Chris Nowinski says Tua Tagovailoa ‘being completely misled' on CTE | Habib

Tom Brady appears at a premiere screening of '80 For Brady' in Los Angeles.
Tom Brady appears at a premiere screening of '80 For Brady' in Los Angeles.

Brady, of all people, just had his people send such an order for an obvious comedic parody in which an AI-generated “Tom Brady” does a one-hour standup routine.

See, it’s not OK to impersonate the GOAT.

It is OK to impersonate being the starting quarterback of the Miami Dolphins.

Retired players should give active players space

At that tech show, Brady violated an unwritten rule in this league, wherein someone in his position (out of work, retired) doesn’t openly campaign for someone else’s job. OK, actually the rule is so football coaches don’t campaign for a job unless it’s vacant or obviously about to become vacant. You don’t hear about it being applied to retired players much because retired players ought to know better.

“Oh, man,” Brady said on that stage.

Many in the crowd applauded to egg him on as Brady continued.

Might Tom Brady, here leading the Patriots out of the tunnel before a game against the Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium in 2018, still lead Miami out the tunnel some day?
Might Tom Brady, here leading the Patriots out of the tunnel before a game against the Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium in 2018, still lead Miami out the tunnel some day?

“I know. I will say, now that I’m not affiliated with any team anymore — and you know I had strong ties with a couple of teams — I do have some friends on the Dolphins that I really like. So I wouldn’t say I necessarily root for them all the time, but I root for my friends to do well and several of them play for Miami.”

This is just a wild guess, but none of those friends is named Tua Tagovailoa.

Maybe Tagovailoa shrugged it off. He has gotten used to guys nipping at his heels. Before Brady, it was Deshaun Watson. Maybe someday Aaron Rodgers will be on deck. Who knows?

Oddly enough, this week the Dolphins are feeling the sting of being associated with Brady. They don’t have a pick in the first round of the NFL Draft because they tampered with Brady and Sean Payton when both were under contract with other organizations. If Brady was soured by that episode, he’s not showing it. As for the Dolphins, you can’t help but wonder if owner Stephen Ross doesn’t remain enamored with the idea of seeing Brady, a fellow Michigan man, in aqua and orange.

Tagovailoa is polarizing enough, with a large segment of fans offended by the slightest criticism (or even perceived criticism) of him and the other segment in a lather if he’s praised. The last thing the Dolphins need is for any hint of those dynamics to penetrate the locker room.

What happened to Tom Brady retiring ‘for good'?

Fact is, no one really knows how The Tua Era will play out in Miami. No one knows whether he’ll stay healthy enough for it to play out at all.

Everyone should hope Tagovailoa gets to show what he can or cannot do. But if he doesn’t, then — and only then — would it be kosher for the Dolphins and Brady to be smitten with one another. All it would take is for general manager Chris Grier to send up the Jay Cutler bat signal.

Brady seems ready to answer. How do we know? From Brady himself. Think back a couple of months ago, when he posted that 51-second video shot, possibly, on South Beach.

“I’m retiring,” he said. “For good.”

See how that works? It’s not hard to be definitive. To get to the point. To do exactly what he did not do at that tech show. By being coy, Brady knew he was opening a bushel of worms (way more than fit in a can). But fading into the background isn’t his thing.

In the past several days he also has been spotted cheering on niece Maya Brady, a standout on UCLA’s powerful softball team, and taking to social media to applaud Ryan Reynolds after the Welsh soccer team he co-owns, Wrexham, earned promotion.

“The thrill of victory. Congratulations!” Brady wrote.

Now that’s how you support your friends. Anything else? Cease. Desist.

Dolphins reporter Hal Habib can be reached at  hhabib@pbpost.com and followed on Twitter  @gunnerhal.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Tom Brady should cease, desist with talk of Tua Tagovailoa's Dolphins job