The 2-7 Dolphins have parted ways with longtime general manager Chris Grier and are already looking ahead to next season. As part of their evaluation process, the ‘Fins could consider benching starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, per Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network (video link).
There were rumblings to that effect last month, but Tagovailoa responded with his best outing of the season in a 34-10 win over the Falcons. Unfortunately, he submitted a mediocre performance in Thursday night’s loss to the Ravens, and it now appears a demotion is on the table, with Rapoport saying the southpaw is “playing to keep his job.”
Following Grier’s departure, head coach Mike McDaniel – who was considered the savior of Tagovailoa’s career not too long ago – was said to be safe through at least the end of the 2025 campaign. Subsequent reports from Dianna Russini of The Athletic (subscription required) and Rapoport echo the notion that owner Stephen Ross still believes in McDaniel and wants him on the sidelines for the long haul.
But Tagovailoa almost certainly represents McDaniel’s best chance to keep his job. After all, the other passers on the roster are Zach Wilson – one of the biggest draft busts in recent history – and seventh-round rookie Quinn Ewers. Rapoport describes Ewers as “impressive,” but after briefly overtaking Wilson for Miami’s QB2 role, the Texas product has been relegated back to the third position on the depth chart.
There could be some value in seeing what Ewers has to offer, though it would be hard for an outsider to see the same value in having Wilson take the reins. Still, if Tagovailoa keeps throwing interceptions – he presently leads the league with 11 picks – it appears McDaniel could consider a switch (if that does happen, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald suggests McDaniel should make sure Ross would not hold any ensuing offensive struggles against him).
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, meanwhile, believes the Dolphins are likely to part ways with McDaniel at season’s end. In Florio’s estimation, Tagovailoa’s contract situation – he is due $54MM in guaranteed money in 2026 – could make the Miami HC post less attractive to top coaching candidates, unless the Dolphins perform poorly enough to assure themselves of one of the top QB prospects in next year’s draft class.
Rapoport suggests the most viable option for the Dolphins with respect to Tagovailoa is to pay down some of the money he is owed in order to facilitate an offseason trade to a club with a need for a bridge passer. A pre-June 1 release is impossible due to the dead money hit it would generate, and even a post-June 1 release would be problematic from a cap standpoint. Of course, Miami could simply keep Tagovailoa as its starter (or possible bridge) and hope he can return to the form that earned him his $53.1MM/year deal in the first place.