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Tua Tagovailoa's Behind the Back Pitch to Dolphins Receiver Had NFL Fans Amazed

Karl Rasmussen

Tua Tagovailoa flipped the ball to Dolphins wide receiver Malik Washington for a moderate gain.
Tua Tagovailoa flipped the ball to Dolphins wide receiver Malik Washington for a moderate gain. / Screenshot via NFL on X
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The Dolphins' offense hasn't been sharp through the first three weeks of the NFL season, but they appeared plenty confident early into their matchup against the Jets on Monday night.

While working the ball down field, Miami pulled out a bit of trickery in its play calling, dialing up an impressive behind-the-back flip from Tua Tagovailoa to Malik Washington after some convincing misdirection.

The Dolphins sent Devon Achane running behind Tagovailoa as if he'd be receiving a pitch. Tagovailoa then faked a handoff to running back Ollie Gordon before tossing the ball behind his back to Washington, who followed Achane's route behind his quarterback. The play had many moving parts, but it worked out well and resulted in a gain of eight yards.

NFL fans tuning into the Monday night showdown were blown away by the well-designed trick play, and they took to social media with praise for the Dolphins' creative approach.

If that's not a sign the Dolphins' offense was feeling itself against the Jets, I'm not sure what is.

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Karl Rasmussen
KARL RASMUSSEN

Karl Rasmussen is a staff writer for the Breaking and Trending News team for Sports Illustrated. A University of Oregon alum who joined SI in February 2023, his work has appeared on 12up and ClutchPoints. Rasmussen is a loyal Tottenham, Jets, Yankees and Ducks fan.

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