Time to Stop the QB Comps for Tua
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Enough with the Tua comparisons with Josh Allen or Justin Herbert or anybody else!
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa isn't like either of them regardless of what similarities media analysts want to come up with and he'll never be like either of them.
And before we go any further, that's perfectly fine.
The Dolphins don't need for Tagovailoa to become prime Josh Allen or prime Justin Herbert, they need for Tagovailoa to become the best Tua he possibly can be.
HOPE FOR TUA FOR 2022 AND BEYOND BUT ALSO QUESTIONS
And at this time no one knows for sure exactly what level he'll be able to reach in the NFL, though the 2022 should provide a much clearer picture after the hiring of head coach Mike McDaniel and his loud public support and the additions of Tyreek Hill and Terron Armstead, among others, to help him out on offense.
But, again, let's stop with the comps with Allen or Herbert.
With Herbert, let's stop pretending that Tua was on a par with Herbert the past two seasons because he had a better record as a starter, because neither team made the playoffs, or — and this is the worst one of all — because the Dolphins defeated the Chargers when Tua and Herbert started against each other in 2020.
Football is the ultimate team and the won-loss record should be considered only one of the measures for success, and a small one at that.
Remember, Trent Dilfer won a Super Bowl and Dan Marino didn't. Would anyone even put Dilfer in the same stratosphere as Marino as an NFL quarterback?
Herbert was better than Tagovailoa in 2021 by any measure, and even those quick to point out that "Herbert came up short" in a late-season game against the lowly Houston Texans conveniently leave out the fact the Texans were 9-for-13 on third downs that day and rushed for 189 yards.
When the Dolphins defeated Houston earlier last season, the Texans were 6-for-17 on third down and rushed for 76 yards.
Oh, and one more thing, while Herbert did throw two interceptions that day, his passer rating for the game was 92.1 — you know, two full points higher than Tua's 90.1 for the season.
And if anybody who watched the Sunday night finale last year thinks for a millisecond Herbert was the reason the Chargers lost in overtime against the Raiders to get eliminated from playoff contention — after completing five consecutive fourth-down passes — well, let's just say that's absurd.
Put it this way, there is no question whatsoever around the Chargers as to whether they have their franchise quarterback, that Herbert will get a long-term extension as soon as he's eligible to play for it.
And the same goes for the other top six quarterback in that 2020 draft, Joe Burrow out in Cincinnati.
THE JOSH ALLEN COMPARISON AND WHY IT'S A STRETCH
As for Josh Allen, what comes up quite frequently is the big jump Allen made in his third NFL season after the Buffalo Bills added Stefon Diggs to help out on offense.
The problem with that comparison is that even though Allen was wildly inconsistent as a passer his first two seasons — you could even say he was spreading the ball all over the place — his otherworldly athleticism always was obvious.
Now, probably nobody could have predicted he'd become as good a passer as he has since 2020, but the arm talent was undeniable from the start and Allen made some throws in his first two seasons that other quarterbacks simply couldn't make.
So there always was reason to think he could become effective as a passer.
And, here's another overlooked factor, Allen was a major factor as a scrambler in his first two seasons, evidenced by his 1,141 yards and 17 touchdowns combined.
Oh, and for those so quick to point to Tua's record as a starter, let's not forget that the Bills went to the playoffs in Allen's second season.
So, quite frankly, this notion of looking at Tua and suggesting he's due for a big jump with the addition of Hill because that's what happened with Allen after Diggs arrived is just a stretch.
WHY TUA COULD SUCCEED IN 2022
Now, this isn't to suggest that Tagovailoa isn't going to take a big step forward in 2022 because he very well could.
In fact, I'm on the record as saying that 90.1 passer rating will make a clear jump in 2022 and might even approach triple digits.
And the reason is that McDaniel is going to run a QB-friendly offense that will take advantage of Tua's strength, which remains short- and intermediate-range accuracy.
As stated before, Jared Goff and Jimmy Garoppolo each topped 100 in passer rating in that system, so there's no reason to think Tua can't do the same in 2022.
But if it does happen, it still will have nothing to do with Josh Allen and his third-year jump. And it also won't mean that Tagovailoa has become as good as Justin Herbert.
Those are all separate conversations.
The focus should be on Tua and what he can become as an NFL quarterback. All other QBs should be inconsequential by now.
