In the wake of the NFL’s finding that on two occasions the Dolphins tampered with quarterback Tom Brady, in one case about the possibility of him playing in Miami, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa reaffirmed his belief that he has the backing of the organization.
“I remember I came in 2020 so whatever happened in 2019, I can’t even speak on that,” Tagovailoa said Wednesday after the team’s seventh training camp practice. “I was here in 2020 and I’m still here and I’m blessed to be here. If it has to do with support from the team, I think the team is all in with me and all of the guys that we have now.”
The NFL on Tuesday revealed the findings of a six-month investigation into the Dolphins and potential violations of the league’s antitampering policy. The investigation concluded that the team’s “impermissible communications” with Brady began as early as August 2019 and continued throughout the season and postseason. Vice chairman Bruce Beal, who has been banned from all league meetings for the remainder of the season and fined $500,000, was found to have led communications with Brady in 2019.
Beal and team owner Stephen Ross, who has been suspended through Oct. 17 and fined $1.5 million, also had prohibited discussions with Brady and his agent during and after the 2021 season about Brady being a limited partner or executive and “the possibility of his playing for the Dolphins,” the investigation concluded.
Tagovailoa said the team learned about the league’s investigation and discipline, which also included the loss of a 2023 first-rounder and 2024 third-rounder, after practice ended and players saw the news on TV upon returning to the locker room. Otherwise, he didn’t know too many details about the investigation.
A day after the discipline was handed down, multiple players and assistant coaches — coach Mike McDaniel was not scheduled to speak to reporters Wednesday but offensive coaches did — said the tampering probe hasn’t been addressed or distracted from training camp.
“Nothing to be said,” tight ends coach and assistant coach Jon Embree said. “Control what you can control.”
The league’s findings that high-ranking members of the organization had multiple talks with Brady was another reminder of the questions and uncertainty that have followed Tagovailoa’s tenure in Miami since he was selected with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
After the firing of Brian Flores in January, the team halted its pursuit of Deshaun Watson and hired first-time head coach Mike McDaniel in part to work with Tagovailoa, who is 13-8 as a starter.
From McDaniel to general manager Chris Grier to new wide receiver Tyreek Hill, there has been public support for Tagovailoa as the team’s starting quarterback and a leader.
The early returns from Tagovailoa at training camp have been positive. On Wednesday, he once again donned the orange jersey as the previous practice’s top performer. And Tagovailoa’s often-discussed deep ball has been anything but that. It has been routine, as the third-year player has connected with favorites such as receivers Hill and Jaylen Waddle. With Hill sitting out of practice Wednesday because of load management, it gave Tagovailoa an opportunity to build his rapport with other pass-catchers, such as rookie wideout Erik Ezukanma and River Cracraft, who both were on the receiving end of deep passes.
“I think people don’t think I can throw the ball far,” Tagovailoa said after practice of the constant discourse about his arm strength. “I would say that’s the fascination. Like, ‘Wow! He can throw the ball!’ It’s hard to be in the NFL if you can’t throw the ball, right?”
One video, of Tagovailoa connecting with Hill on a pass that traveled about 50 yards in the air Saturday, generated more than two million views on Twitter. After Tagovailoa’s infamous underthrow to Hill during organized team activities, the polarizing quarterback was on the end of a much more flattering viral video.
“That’s not the first time and it won’t be the last that they’ll connect like that,” McDaniel said Tuesday. “I was pumped because the exciting part to me was that Tua did it at the appropriate time. He wasn’t just throwing a long ball. He read the defense and that’s what he felt and he did it with conviction. If you guys watch it, he did it in one-hitch timing which is kind of how we want the quarterback to do it, but the reaction was what’s the next play because I think everyone would be disappointed if we were satisfied with that. That’s what we’re supposed to do when it’s there and let’s go execute the next play.”
For all the talk of Tagovailoa’s improvement with his arm strength — a point of emphasis during his offseason training — one teammate has seen growth in another area.
“I think physically, since he got here two years ago, three years ago, whenever it was, obviously he’s made a lot of strides,” tight end Durham Smythe said. “Everyone can see that. I say this every time this question is asked, and I’ve been kind of saying it over the last two years, because it keeps growing on a pretty linear path. It’s just his grasp of the offense, his grasp of professional football in general. There’s always a transition period, specifically for that position, so I think he just stays on this linear path of growth, and I think really the sky is the limit.”
The Dolphins are still a week away from the start of a pair of joint practices with the Buccaneers in Tampa and 10 days from their first preseason game with Tampa Bay. The practice sessions and game should give a better idea of whether the early optimism in training camp will carry over to games that really matter.
“Tua’s doing a really nice job of taking the information, processing it and then carrying it over to the field,” quarterbacks coach Darrell Bevell said. “For the most part, he’s made really good decisions.”
