Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has been one of the most scrutinized players in the league since he was selected in the first round of the 2020 NFL draft.
Since Mike McDaniel took over as the team’s head coach Tagovailoa has been extremely successful. He’s completed 67% of his passes for 5,424 yards 39 touchdowns and 13 interceptions with a 108.34 passer rating in their 19 games together. He’s also helped his team go 13-6 in his starts, and that includes multiple games that he had to leave with injuries.
Now, while some are saying Tagovailoa deserves to be the front-runner for league MVP, others believe that he’s the beneficiary of the system and the elite weapons that he has around him.
One person who believes the latter is Stephen A. Smith, who stated that Miami’s offense consists of a lot of two-yard passes that wide receiver Tyreek Hill is turning into big plays.
Hill took exception to Smith’s comments and addressed the narratives that are currently being used against the quarterback on a new episode of his podcast, “It Needed to be Said.”
“I’m sick and tired of people bashing my quarterback for no reason,” Hill said. “I’m sick of it. I’m standing on the table and saying right now, I’m sick of people bashing my quarterback. He’s been doing a hell of a job this year, and people need to stop giving him crap.
“A lot of people don’t understand what my dawg went through just to get here, man. What he went through last year especially. And, to get to where he is now, being talked about as an MVP? That’s next level. I don’t know too many quarterbacks that are doing that. I’m sorry.”
In 2023, Tagovailoa’s average depth of target is 7.6 yards downfield. That’s tied for 20th in the NFL, but the separation in the league isn’t crazy. In fact, Matthew Stafford is sixth in the NFL in the statistic, and his average depth of target is just one yard more than Tagovailoa’s at 8.6.
Interestingly, Tagovailoa is tied for second in the league in completed air yards per attempt at 4.6. He’s just behind San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, who plays in the same system as Tagovailoa.
Hill has been one of Tagovailoa’s biggest champions since arriving in Miami during the 2022 offseason, and he’ll continue to do so until one of them leaves the Dolphins.
