Your Tagovailoa had a dramatic year. Although he was selected in 5th place in the 2020 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins, he was at the same time recovering from a serious hip injury that left many wondering about his future as an NFL quarterback. Even after Tagovailoa joined the starting lineup in Week 8 and won three consecutive games, Dolphins coach Brian Flores opted to put him on the bench in Week 11, and again in Week 16, despite always keeping the rookie as your defender. When the dust settled at the end of the regular season, Tagovailoa made it 6-3 as a starter and shot 1,814 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions.
There are many reasons to be excited about the future when it comes to the Dolphins’ new quarterback, as Tagovailoa became the third rookie signal caller in the Super Bowl era to not launch an interception in his first five career starts, and became the first new Dolphins quarterback to win each of their first three matches. He also became the first Dolphins player to lead a winning campaign in the fourth quarter or in overtime in his first two NFL games since Chad Henne. Unfortunately, with the off-season, new problems came that Tagovailoa was unable to control, as there are currently rumors that the Dolphins are in the mix for Houston Texans star quarterback Deshaun Watson, who is looking for a change of scenery. If Watson were to negotiate with Miami this off-season, the deal would likely include Tagovailoa as well.
This week, CBS Sports sat down with Tagovailoa to discuss his rookie campaign and what he has been trying to achieve in this off-season. With the uncertainty surrounding his current situation, Tagovailoa says he turns to what he can control – and this is how he can improve as a player and leader. The next few months will be about how to get back to 100% health and prepare for a year of break.
Lessons learned
Recently, Tagovailoa posted photos of himself working in that off-season that generated a lot of attention. It looked like he was gaining muscle, and Tagovailoa told us that “getting his body back” was important to him in that off season.
“Actually, I’m just trying to get my body back, it’s the first time I have a real off-season, so just trying to get stronger, trying to get faster, trying to get back to how I used to be … back to Alabama , “Tagovailoa laughed. “I’m just trying to improve these things until the off-season.”
It took him some time to fully recover from the hip injury he suffered while in Alabama, but Tagovailoa also dealt with foot and thumb injuries during his debut campaign, which forced him to miss a Week 12 fight against the New York Jets .
Tagovailoa said one of the biggest lessons he learned in his first season in the NFL was about tweaking the game. Breaking opposing defense packages and schemes are playing at you on a drive-by-drive basis, and actually taking control of an NFL attack full of veteran players, unlike your fellow college athletes, was a challenge.
“I would say adjustments, you have to adjust them right away,” said Tagovailoa when asked what he learned in his transition to the NFL. “If the defense gives you a different concept that you haven’t seen, you have to know how to adjust with your guys and tell them how you want things to be done. You are a coach. With that said, I think it is with this is what I need to improve as well. But I am happy to have achieved this first year. ”
Success under Saban
Getting the first season of the NFL is important, because if there is one thing that Tagovailoa knows, it is how to handle the pressure and make these kinds of adjustments to succeed. His introduction to the world of sports in general came through one of the most risky game adjustments ever made by legendary Alabama coach Nick Saban. Tagovailoa, who was a real freshman at the time, replaced Jalen Hurts in the interval of the 2018 National Football Championship game and helped Crimson Tide overcome a 13-0 disadvantage to win 26-23 in overtime against Georgia. This marked the beginning of a very successful university career, as Tagovailoa ended his junior season as Alabama’s touchdown responsibility leader with 96. His 87 touchdown passes led him to overtake AJ McCarron by the highest number of launches in history of the program, and he finished third in Alabama’s history with 7,442 passing yards.
Tagovailoa’s entry into the NFL was not so dramatic, but his stance on himself, his team and victories has never changed – and that was clear when we asked him what were the best “seniors” he experienced in his first professional season. It wasn’t his first touchdown pass or his first start to his career or his first return win. It was on any Sunday that his team came out on top.
“The best moments I had were when we won, “said Tagovailoa.” Whenever we won, those were the highlights. But, on the other hand, low points occur when you lose and when you don’t achieve what you set out to achieve before the start of the season. “
So, what does Tagovailoa need to improve to keep Miami in the winning streak in 2021? Among many things, he says it is about his preparation.
“For me, it’s about the little things – the little details about my game,” said Tagovailoa. “More so, how to prepare most of the time. What to look for, how to watch a movie, what to do when watching a movie.”
Tagovailoa is also working to be a leader off the field this off season. He recently joined USAA, the official NFL partner Salute to Service, to connect with veteran military Kerry Smith, who was selected as one of the five winners of the USAA Salute to Service grand prize draw. Smith had to participate in a virtual hangout with Tagovailoa and won several other awards.
“You know I have a lot of family members who served in the military, so I have a deep appreciation for these guys,” said Tagovailoa.
Dreaming DeVonta
The Dolphins are expected to make major strides this offseason through the NFL’s 2021 Draft, as they have two choices in the first round, including overall choice # 3, thanks to a previous exchange with the Texans. It is believed that the Dolphins could target a wide receiver with that primary choice, and many are projecting that Miami will choose Tagovailoa’s former teammate at DeVonta Smith – who received Tagovailoa’s victory pass in overtime for the game. 2018 National Championship.
Smith became the first recipient since 1991 to win the Heisman Trophy, after a season in which he took 117 passes for 1,856 yards and 23 touchdowns. At the College Football Playoff National Championship against Ohio State, he took 12 passes for 215 yards and three touchdowns – all in the first half! Smith said last month that he and Tagovailoa discussed the possibility of “chasing” with the Dolphins, and it would definitely be something that would help Tagovailoa in his development as a defender as well. When we asked Tagovailoa how he thinks Smith will do in the NFL, he can’t help but laugh.
“I think your transition to the next level will be a little … reduced to none,” said Tagovailoa. “In a way that is not going to change much. I think the competition will be different for him obviously, but he will be more than fine. I know a lot of people say that he is too small or too thin, but his film speaks for itself. He goes out and takes care of his business, does what he needs to do. They don’t call it a ‘Slim Reaper’ for no reason. “
Few novice quarterbacks have had to contend with the kind of adversity and external noise that Tagovailoa had to contend with last year, but that will not upset him. The possibilities, the rumors of exchange, the constant questioning can only take the focus off his goal, which for Tagovailoa is to win games and, finally, to win a Super Bowl.
“Our goal has always been the same – you want to win as many games as you can and as many as you need to make it to the playoffs, win your division and reach the (Super Bowl) and try to win that,” said Tagovailoa. “I think that will always be the goal.”