Examining Tua Teammate's Theory About What Went Wrong (And Can It Be Fixed?)

Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa had a difficult 2025 season that ended with him being benched

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) leaves the field following a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium in his last start of the 2025 season. | Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

What's wrong with Tua?

That easily was the most frequent question that surfaced during a difficult 2025 season for the Miami Dolphins, even when the team had its four-game winning streak.

Tua Tagovailoa started the season looking to recapture the form that earned him a Pro Bowl invitation for the 2023 season and a big contract extension the following September, but instead he ended it as the emergency third quarterback after being benched.

There was no question about the regression in Tua's play, but exactly why it happened is a lot more mysterious.

Was the issue physical? Psychological? Other factors?

WALLER'S WORDS ABOUT TUA

During his podcast with former Cleveland Browns first-round pick Johnny Manziel where he shared details of Mike McDaniel's last day as Dolphins head coach, tight end Darren Waller offered an interesting theory as to what happened with Tagovailoa in 2025.

"When I showed up there in training camp, I got hurt early (so) I was doing speed work and I hadn't trained, but I was watching most of training camp," Waller said. "I'm on sideline. I'm watching this man throw darts every practice. Like, it was just like, what the (frick) am I watching? Like I've never seen the anticipation and the accuracy out there.

"So it's like, I think, from my standpoint, the skill set for him is still there, where I think, like, maybe the disconnect comes from like seeing it translate. I think there might be like some, there could be some trauma still stored in his body, from what he's gone through, like with the head injuries and stuff. There's a book called 'The Body Keeps the Score,' which is, like the No. 1 book about trauma. And they talk about how trauma was first with war veterans and what they went through there. And they'll come home and they'll see like a car sitting by itself in a grocery store parking lot, but they're in their body, and their brain will tell them that car has an explosive in it when it's just like a car sitting at Publix or something.

"And so I think, I can notice him, like trying to make things happen in the game, like he's trying to pull the trigger, but it's almost like his body and his system won't allow him to do that. I feel like if there's a way for him to find some healing in that regard, I think the skill set is definitely still there."

CAN TUA TURN IT AROUND?

To be sure, Tagovailoa has taken a lot of big hits and sustained his share of significant injuries, and that dates back all the way to his days at the University of Alabama.

There was no such apparent injury or setback in 2025, but the 2024 season was rough on the quarterback, with the concussion in the Week 2 game against the Buffalo Bills and then the hip injury that sidelined him for the final two games of the season.

The concussion was his third diagnosed concussion since he entered the NFL, following the two during the 2022 season. The hip that was injured was the same that was damaged in Tua's final college game, though McDaniel said the two were not related.

Regardless, there's no denying the possibility of a cumulative effect of Tua's injuries having taken a toll both physically and psychologically.

Let's also not forget the idea that former GM Chris Grier and McDaniel both publicly made it very clear that Tagovailoa needed to avoid unnecessary risk and keep himself in the game, which no doubt made him more hesitant at times.

All those factors could explain Tagovailoa's hesitancy to let the ball fly at times, but there also was an apparent decline in physical traits (mobility, arm strength) as well.

A year removed from the injury issues of 2024 certainly might help Tua regain his mojo in the pocket, but then the question becomes whether the physical issues of 2025 can get rectified.

The bigger question, of course, is whether Tagovailoa will try to bounce back as a member of the Dolphins or another team, but that's a question for another day.