One of Tua Tagovailoa’s former teammates did not have a ton of respect for the Miami Dolphins quarterback based on what he said about yesterday’s game.
Indianapolis Colts cornerback Xavien Howard, a former Dolphin, said the Colts’ goal on Sunday was to take Tagovailoa’s first read away. Howard said that sends Tagovailoa into “panic mode.”
“We knew he gets the ball out pretty quick,” Howard said, via Stephen Holder of ESPN. “And once we take away his first read, I feel like it’s panic mode after that. And it showed yesterday.”
Howard and Tagovailoa spent four seasons together as Dolphins teammates, so Howard is certainly familiar with how the quarterback operates. The fact that he would suggest it is that easy to send Tagovailoa into a panic is not exactly a great look for the quarterback. Even worse, other opponents have said the exact same thing about Tagovailoa in the past.
Tagovailoa was intercepted twice in an ugly 33-8 loss to the Colts on Sunday. After the game, he seemed to take offense at a press conference question that suggested he was prone to turning the ball over in bunches.
The Miami quarterback had quality seasons in 2022 and 2023, but injuries and mistakes have limited his effectiveness otherwise. A lot of his opponents do not seem to respect him that much, either.