Tua Tagovailoa OUT, Quinn Ewers IN for Miami Dolphins
In this story:
Hey, there were rumors that Tua Tagovailoa could be benched as soon as Wednesday. For full transparency, I tried to hold out as long as possible. Now, this has come to pass this morning.
The Miami Dolphins are benching Tua Tagovailoa for rookie seventh-round pick Quinn Ewers, a person with knowledge of the quarterback change told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
— WSVN 7 News (@wsvn) December 17, 2025
The crazy part about sports news is once it hits, it travels fast. Arguably, the crazier part is how slow the inevitable feels even if that happens quickly. However, Quinn Ewers will indeed start on Sunday. There will be another inevitable questions about what Miami does with Tagovailoa. Honestly, it feels clear that the Dolphins want to see what they have with Ewers over a larger sample size.
That Quinn Ewers First Impression BUT...
So, Ewers did see some action in that Week 7 debacle versus Cleveland. Let us just say it was not his best work.
Quinn Ewers played two drives at the end of week 7 vs CLE:
— Jeff Mueller, PT, DPT (@jmthrivept) December 17, 2025
12 total plays
2 fumbles
2 sacks
1 delay of game
1 hospital ball to Jaylen Waddle
1 exciting 40 yard downfield pass
Should be fun to watch. https://t.co/ZqTrWMld7j
Ewers brought a little of everything to the table in that Cleveland game. The problem partially was the conditions. Now, he has most of a full week to prepare, get all the first team reps, etc. Joe Burrow versus Quinn Ewers on Sunday may be must watch TV from a fantasy football standpoint especially. Burrow is looking to bounce back from last week with Ewers trying to show he belongs.
Ewers does not have a cannon of an arm but he definitely possesses a quick release. In a Mike McCarthy offense, that is essential. Too often, Tagovailoa over the last month looked almost afraid to make a mistake. There were too many missed reads, progression miscues, and worse. Again, the last straw was against Pittsbugh. All but 65 passing yards from Tagovailoa came in "garbage time".
Ewers Has Assets And Advantages
The new quarterbacks has assets and advantages. For one, he can hand the ball off to De'Von Achane a little more often. Cincinnati gives up 5.3 yards per carry and Achane is one of more explosive running backs in the NFL. Darren Waller makes for a great safety net as a tight end and can get open especially well in the red zone.
Add in that both teams are out of the playoffs here. There will be nothing to lose on both sides so that could potentially favor the offenses. It makes Ewers at least a longer shot stream for fantasy football owners beset by injuries.
Again, the Dolphins average a solid 4.9 yards per carry (fourth in the NFL) running the football. Establish the run then throw. It's not that hard. Ewers can swing passes out to Achane (leads team with 61 catches) and get the ball to Jaylen Waddle a little more often. Maybe the final couple of fantasy weeks will not be that bad for Miami after all.
