New Jets QB Candidate Emerges: Tua Tagovailoa

The New York Jets will be surveying the quarterback market and another option officially will be hitting the open market.

So far this offseason, we've already seen a lot of movement in the quarterback market. The Arizona Cardinals opted to move on from Kyler Murray and the Las Vegas Raiders moved on from Geno Smith, for example. Both won't actually hit the open market until the new league year, though. With just a few hours to go until free agency opened up on March 9, the Miami Dolphins announced that another big-name quarterback is being released: Tua Tagovailoa. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the news and Miami quickly announced afterward.

"Sources: The Dolphins are releasing QB Tua Tagovailoa with a post–June 1 designation," Schefter wrote. "By cutting Tagovailoa, Miami will take on an NFL-record $99 million in dead money, split over two years, but new GM Jon-Eric Sullivan and HC Jeff Hafley now get a fresh start at the quarterback position."

We have informed QB Tua Tagovailoa that he will be released after the start of the new league year. pic.twitter.com/vc0chU6gYk
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) March 9, 2026

Should the Jets bring in Tua Tagovailoa?

Jan 4, 2026; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) throws a pass before the game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images | Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images

Tagovailoa quickly becomes another quarterback option for Jets fans to watch out for. Both ESPN's Rich Cimini and The Athletic's Zack Rosenblatt reported that Tagovailoa is someone connected to the franchise.

"As for QB, the top names I'm hearing are Kyler Murray, Geno Smith, Carson Wentz, Mitch Trubisky and Tua Tagovailoa. For the second year in a row, they're in the QB musical-chairs game. Not ideal," Cimini wrote.

"Tua Tagovailoa is someone the Jets have been looking into," Rosenblatt wrote.

Now, Tagovailoa is heading to the open market after six seasons in Miami. He's just 28 years old and has one Pro Bowl nod under his belt. When healthy, Tagovailoa has shown that he can be explosive in the National Football League. It's hard to deny that fact. He led the league with 4,624 passing yards in 2023 to go along with 29 touchdown passes to 14 interceptions. He only was able to play in 11 games in 2024, though. Then, played in 14 games in 2025 and was benched.

With Tagovailoa, it's known that there is talent there. The big question has been injuries, and specifically concussions. Now that he's been released, he should be cheap. He's worth looking into, at least.