Dolphins Saturday Post-Bills Game Mailbag: Many Questions About Tua

Part 2 of the post-Bills game Miami Dolphins On SI mailbag:

From Justin:

I feel like Grier took the criticism of not building the line too serious with when he traded up in the second round to draft a lineman who so far has not been good. I would have rather had Eichenberg be a starter and have drafted Will Johnson. We would be in much better shape.

Hey Justin, well, Eichenberg has been out of action since the start of training camp, so we’d be looking at a backup there anyway. And there are a lot of fans who would not like that in the least. And while your overall point looks good right now, I suggest we hold off a bit before we make definitive statements or judgments about what the Dolphins should have done with that draft pick, even though right now Will Johnson clearly is off to a better career start than Jonah Savaiinaea. But, again, we’re not even out of September yet.

From Lloyd Heilbrunn:

That couple of million they saved by not re-signing Calais Campbell is sure doing a bad job stopping the run, isn't it? I know everyone's going to bitch about Tua, but do we have a top 5 worst defense in Dolphins history?

Hey Lloyd, you’re assuming that Campbell wanted to return and that a better offer would have kept him from going back to Arizona, and I don’t think that’s a valid assumption. And it’s still very early in the season, but the defense absolutely is off to a brutal start, but the 2019 defense was some kind of bad at the start too and the defenses of the late 1980s were not great shakes, either.

From Olive Grove Jon:

Hey Alain. The game plan was good. The execution was almost there but 2 big mistakes took away a chance to perhaps win the game. A $50 million QB has to produce in those moments. Do you think after this game the organization is thinking about its next move at QB for 2026?

Hey OGJ, no, I don’t believe the Dolphins are thinking that far ahead or anything other than how to get the 2025 season on track.

From Mason:

Good morning, Alain! After five seasons as Dolphins quarterback, Tua seems to be regressing and playing apprehensively. What is your take on his performance, particularly over the last two years? It also appears he panics when teams blitz.

Hey Mason, I think overall Tua had a fine 2024 season, even with the large number of short throws. I have noticed so far this season that Tua seems to get happy feet pretty quickly in the pocket, and I’m not sure whether it’s a cumulative effect of his injuries or a lack of trust in the offensive line. The late-game failures also are obviously very disappointing.

From $tax:

Why is Sieler on Special Teams?

Because Sieler always has been on special teams, which is not unusual for starting defensive linemen.

From Jayco:

When McDaniel is fired, what do you suspect his greatest regret will be?

Hey Jayco, that’s a question for Mike McDaniel when and if that time comes. That’s not something I care to speculate about (even I’m not usually shy about speculating).

From Armando Acevedo:

Is it possible Ross fires Grier at the end of the season or before? Is it possible Ross hires a new GM and lets him decide on coach McDaniel? Who should be a good candidate for GM?

Hey Armando, I don’t see that as a very strong possibility at all. First, in-season GM changes are very, very rare in the NFL. Second, I do believe if changes get made, they’ll be wide-ranging.

From Hard Rock Ron:

Have you ever seen a more terrified QB in the NFL?

Hey Ron, there have been many examples of quarterbacks who look skittish in the pocket, and it’s fair to say he looks that way these days, like he’s feeling pressure before it’s actually there. But he’s far from the first or the worst as far as that’s concerned.

From Mario Morissette:

If Fins trade away Tua, Hill, how much money do you believe they can transfer to their new team. I guess the rest would be dead cap?

Hey Mario, the dead cap is going to come through whatever salary is left to be paid, along with the remaining prorated portion of the signing bonus. The Dolphins wouldn’t get salary cap relief by paying part of any player’s salary.

From Jeff Golden:

The offense was built around Tua, and weapons were acquired specifically for him. Backup quarterbacks have struggled to find success in his system. Now, Tua appears to be regressing. Was this simply a flawed plan from the start, or am I oversimplifying things? Merci Alain.

Hey Jeff, there’s some validity to what you’re saying, with two important caveats. First, the idea certainly had merit when the Dolphins were 8-3 in 2022 or when they were 11-4 in 2023 but hasn’t looked nearly as good since then. Two, part of the issue with the backups is who those backups were and as evidence I’d suggest we look at where the 2023 and 2024 backups are right now, and the answer is either on a practice squad (Tyler Huntley, Mike White), out of the league (Tim Boye), or as a third-team player who made the roster basically the team’s rookie draft pick was put on IR (Skylar Thompson).

From Brian Lewis:

At what point does McDaniel think about benching Tua? There are just too many back-breaking interceptions. Maybe Zach Wilson is ready for a Baker Mayfield like revival.

Hey Brian, given the investment they’ve made in Tua, I’d be shocked if he were benched anytime soon. And I’d add that his play hasn’t merited a benching, regardless of the late-game failures against the Patriots and Bills.

From Michael Blackman:

What are the salary cap ramifications if we trade/release Tua next year?

Hey Michael, the best scenario from a cap standpoint assuming the Dolphins want to move on from Tua next offseason would be a trade after June 1, which would chop off $43 million off his current $56 million cap number for 2026. A trade before June 1 puts his 2026 cap number (dead cap) at $45 million. Releasing him would move his cap number to $99 million, unless it’s with a post-June 1 designation, in which case his cap number becomes $67.4 million. All those figures are from OverTheCap.com. Also remember that Tua’s $39.4 million base salary for 2026 is fully guaranteed, along with an $8 million option bonus. Oh, and how about we let 2025 play out?

From Benjamin A:

At what point does McDaniel know Tua is the problem?

Hey Benjamin, Tua is not responsible for the defense giving up 30 points every week and he’s also not responsible for the special teams mistakes that have hurt the team. So the notion that Tua is the problem is just flat-out inaccurate. But, yes, he can and needs to play better.

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