Where Tua Landed in Annual 'QB Tier' Rankings

Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa is entering his sixth NFL season

Aug 10, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) looks to pass the ball against the Chicago Bears during the first half at Soldier Field. | David Banks-Imagn Images

Tua Tagovailoa was ranked as a middle of the pack quarterback, placed in Tier 3, in the annual rankings from The Athletic based on a survey of NFL coaches and execs, with the Miami Dolphins starter coming in 17th overall.

The quarterbacks were ranked from Tier 1, which is the best, to Tier 5, which is the worst. Tagovailoa came in ranked in the middle, at Tier 3.

Per The Athletic, the 2025 QB tier results came from a panel of 50 voters who were granted anonymity to share candid evaluations and was comprised of six general managers, six assistant GMs, six former GMs, five other executives, eight head coaches and 19 other coaches, including 15 coordinators.

A Tier 1 quarterback was defined as one who "can carry his team each week. The team wins because of him. He expertly handles pure-passing situations. He has no real holes in his game."

The Tier 1 quarterbacks were Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Matthew Stafford. Mahomes and Burrow were the only unanimous Tier 1 quarterbacks.

By being a third-tier quarterback, Tagovailoa and his peers are labeled as legitimate starters but quarterbacks "who need a heavier running game and/or defensive component to win. A lower-volume dropback passing offense suits him best."

Jul 29, 2025; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (10) catches the football during training camp at Baptist Health Training Complex. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

THE GROUP AROUND TUA

Among those quarterbacks joining Tagovailoa in the third tier are Kyler Murray, Aaron Rodgers, Trevor Lawrence and Geno Smith. In the overall rankings, Tagovailoa came in right behind Rodgers and ahead of Lawrence.

Tagovailoa did not have a bad 2024 season, for the games he did play in. He completed 72.9 percent of his passes for 19 touchdowns against seven interceptions. He did this in just under 11 games.

One offensive coach was not extremely benevolent in his comments about Tua. Although, he did place him in Tier 2 of his rankings.

"They literally cannot operate the offense when he is not out there, and then they are a top-10 offense when he is out there," an offensive coach said. "I don't even like watching him play, but at this point, dude, I can't say you are not that guy."

Another executive was equally as challenging in his description of Tagovailoa.

"He is probably a 2 on the production, but if the game is on the line, I'd be scared to death if he were my quarterback," the executive said.

One defensive coach labeled Tagovailoa as the "damn near most accurate quarterback" in the NFL. He is just worried about what happens when the play breaks down and he has to do off script.

"It is the off-script plays that he doesn't have," the coach said. "And if it is not paired with the run game to draw the under coverage, then you don't get full utilization of his accuracy on the second and third level."

Jun 10, 2025; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) handoffs the football to running back De'Von Achane (28) during mandatory minicamp at Hard Rock Stadium. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

One voter said the Dolphins cannot win when Tagovailoa has to win the game on his own, without a solid ground game.

"He does a really good job of hitting these play-action windows and putting it on guys where it's catch-and-run and has good anticipation for it and can get it out of his hands," another defensive coach said. "I have yet to see him carry his team when they are not clicking in other phases. Has Miami ever won where their run game is getting killed, they can't hit play-action stuff and it's just time for Tua to sling the ball?"