After six seasons, the Tua Tagovailoa era in Miami era.
The Dolphins, a long way from the "Tank for Tua" era, are starting fresh with a new head coach and general manager, but the writing was on the wall for Tagovailoa's departure as soon as he was benched for Quinn Ewers in a late-season decision this past December.
Tagovailoa reached the playoffs twice in Miami but was only healthy enough to start one playoff game and couldn't advance. There was an expectation among some that Tagovailoa would be traded this offseason, but he instead will have the ability to choose his next destination.
Here's a look at why the Dolphins released Tagovailoa.
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Why did the Dolphins release Tua Tagovailoa?
Tagovailoa's exit from Miami is no surprise, as the Dolphins have a brand new regime and the team seemed like it reached its ceiling with the former No. 5 pick. A trade was viewed by some as a more likely option than a release, though.
Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan said at the NFL Combine that all options were on the table, including a trade, but no deal came together to offload the quarterback. That is likely thanks to Tagovailoa's hefty contract.
Tagovailoa just played out the first year of a four-year, $212 million contract extension and has $54 million in guarantees for 2026 alone, so a team trading for him would have had to both give up a draft pick of some kind and take on at least a portion of his hefty salary.
It's hard to convince teams to give up assets and pay a significant salary for a middle-tier quarterback. Many teams already have a franchise quarterback in place, while others would rather move forward with a younger option rather than one who might have a limited ceiling. Tagovailoa's history of concussions likely didn't help, as one serious hit to the head could lead to legitimate questions about his NFL future.
Still, the Dolphins might have hoped the Seahawks' Super Bowl win with Sam Darnold, who was cast aside in New York and Carolina but found success in better situations in Minnesota and Seattle, would convince teams to take a flier on Tagovailoa and follow the same blueprint. Teams might be willing to take that chance in free agency, but they weren't willing to do it at that price.
Rather than keep Tagovailoa in an uncomfortable situation for all sides, the Dolphins chose to bite the bullet on a $99 million dead cap hit that will be split across 2026 and 2027 if the move if designated as a post-June 1 release. Here are the details on Tagovailoa's contract.
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Tua Tagovailoa contract
Tagovailoa signed a four-year, $212.4 million contract extension with $167.2 million guaranteed ahead of the 2024 season, but the deal didn't take effect until 2025.
Financially, 2026 was never the best time for the Dolphins to get out of Tagovailoa's contract, but a move became likely as soon as he was benched. An outright release leaves the Dolphins on the hook for a $99 million dead cap hit, which can be spread over the next two seasons if the move is designated as a post-June cut.
If so, the Dolphins will be on the hook for a $67.4 million dead cap hit in 2026 and a $31.8 million hit in 2027. Because Tagovailoa's cap hit for 2026 would have been $56.4 million if he were on the roster, it's an $11 million loss for Miami.
For the benefit of starting fresh as a new regime takes over, the Dolphins deemed the cost worthwhile. Tagovailoa, meanwhile, could sign a discounted deal in free agency because the Dolphins are already paying him, similar to Russell Wilson's deal with the Steelers in 2024.
MORE:Tracking every cap casualty released into NFL free agency
Tua Tagovailoa stats
Season Team Starts Comp. rate Yards TD INT Passer rating
2020 Dolphins 9 64.1% 1,814 11 5 87.1
2021 Dolphins 12 67.8% 2,653 16 10 90.1
2022 Dolphins 13 64.8% 3,548 25 8 105.5
2023 Dolphins 17 69.3% 4,624 29 14 101.1
2024 Dolphins 11 72.9% 2,867 19 7 101.4
2025 Dolphins 14 67.7% 2,660 20 15 88.5
Career 68.0% 18,166 120 59 96.4
Tagovailoa's best statistical seasons came when Mike McDaniel began his tenure as Dolphins coach, but concussion issues reared their head again in 2024 and the wheels fell off in 2025, with Tagovailoa setting a new career-worst mark for interceptions.
Tua Tagovailoa concussion history
Tagovailoa's history of concussions is something teams will have to consider as he hits the open market.
The former No. 5 pick suffered at least two concussions in 2022, and both caused him to miss significant time. Just days after he controversially cleared protocol and returned to a game despite his head hitting the turf hard, Tagovailoa suffered a concussion on "Thursday Night Football" that kept him off the field for two weeks. He later missed the final three games of the season, including a playoff game, with a concussion suffered against the Packers.
In 2024, Tagovailoa was again concussed in a prime-time game against the Bills and missed four games, even with a bye week in between.
Tagovailoa's own well-being is the biggest concern, but any team that signs him knows one more concussion might not just cost him a game or two like most quarterbacks, but possibly bring his future in the NFL into question.
Dolphins QB depth chart
Rank QB
1 Quinn Ewers
2 Cam Miller
With Zach Wilson also ticketed for free agency, Quinn Ewers and Cam Miller are the only quarterbacks remaining on the Dolphins' roster.
Ewers, a seventh-round pick out of Texas in 2025, started the final three games of this past season over Wilson when Tagovailoa was benched. He went 1-2, completing 66.3 percent of passes for 622 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions.
While the new regime didn't draft Ewers, GM Jon-Eric Sullivan said he "did a nice job toward the end of the year" and added that he is "excited about what’s ahead" for the young quarterback.
Miller was actually drafted a round ahead of Ewers by the Raiders out of North Dakota State, but he never saw any game action in Las Vegas and was signed off the practice squad before Week 18. Whether he will be kept around into the season is unclear, but there is no reason to believe Miller will be a starting option for Miami.
Sullivan said the Dolphins plan to draft a quarterback every year as long as he is in charge, so expect Miami to add to this room in April.