The Miami Dolphins, under their new leadership led by Jon-Eric Sullivan, are making sweeping changes to the roster already.
Tyreek Hill and Bradley Chubb have been cut, and Tua Tagovailoa might not be far behind. Thanks to his $214 million contract, trading him will be difficult. A cut might be in store for the lefty Miami QB.
If that cut happens, ESPN's Bill Barnwell projects that Tagovailoa will land a much cheaper contract in free agency from a new team. That projected deal is for just $1.5 million, right around the veteran minimum.
Dolphins' Tua Tagovailoa gets veteran minimum $1.5M projection
"Tagovailoa with an upper-middle-class QB contract was a problem," Barnwell writes. "Tagovailoa at the veterans minimum - which is what a new team would likely pay him in 2026 - could turn out to be a very useful contributor in the right scheme."
If Tagovailoa lands such a veteran minimum contract, assuming the Dolphins release him after being unable to find a trade partner, Barnwell projects, "$1.5 million for Tagovailoa."
The lefty QB is set to make $52 million in 2026. But if the Dolphins cut him this offseason, no team will pay anything close to that figure.
With the Dolphins on the hook for that money, a new team will be able to offer the veteran's minimum, a $1.5 million projected contract according to Barnwell, and have Tagovailoa on a very reasonable deal.
More: ESPN analyst thinks Dolphins' Tua Tagovailoa decision has already been made
If he works out, it's great. But if Tagovailoa struggles, his new team will only have invested $1.5 million in him. This is the exact kind of deal that would be worth handing out to a quarterback like Tagovailoa.
And there's no reason why Tagovailoa wouldn't take this, either. He'd still be getting the $52 million from the Dolphins, with his new team accounting for only a small portion of that figure on a new deal.
Tagovailoa's future in Miami is a big question mark, and if he's released, which seems to be the more likely outcome, then the lefty veteran is headed towards a cheap contract in free agency that a team would be willing to spend on Tagovailoa.
More Dolphins news: