Add Miami Dolphins special advisor Dan Marino to the growing list of players and coaches within the organization who believe Tua Tagovailoa is poised for a breakout season.
During a wide-ranging interview with ESPN, Marino said he has high hopes for the second-year quarterback after watching him in recent practices.
“[Tagovailoa’s] been great. He’s been awesome. He has all the talent in the world. Now it’s just about him developing the relationship with the other players,” Marino told ESPN’s Cameron Wolfe. “It’s been tough because he didn’t have OTAs last year, a lot of the summer camp or the chance to play in exhibition games. All those things delay you somewhat. I’ll tell you, he works his butt off. I’m really excited about him, his future and our future as a team.”
Marino said Tagovaliloa’s Year 2 jump should be significant with a solid offseason and gaining a better understanding of the offense and developing a rhythm with the team’s playmakers.
“As time goes on you, you get a better handle [of things]. You know your people. That’s what OTAs is about, getting your timing down,” Marino said. “He played a lot last year and when he played, we won games. We almost got in the playoffs. All that is a positive. You try to build from the positives.
“He wants to be really good. And in time, he’s going to get there because that’s what type of kid he is.”
Marino, who has been a special advisor for the Dolphins since 2014, is one of the best pure passers in NFL history. But he told the network in his current role he’s not “Coach Marino,” just “someone who can help at times with my view of certain things.”
While Tagovailoa had his moments during his rookie season, he failed to live up to expectations as the No. 5 pick in last year’s draft.
Tagovailoa went 6-3 as a starter after recovering from major hip surgery without any setback. But he had just two games with more than 300 yards passing, failed to throw more than two touchdowns in any game and did not have a completion longer than 35 yards.
During that stretch as a starter, he struggled against the Las Vegas Raiders and was replaced by former backup quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, who led the team to a dramatic come-from-behind win.
Shortly after the season ended, Tagovailoa said his rookie season was “below average” and that he struggled with reading and playing against NFL defenses, while learning how to process and play in an NFL offense.
He recently admitted that he did not have the greatest grasp of the team’s playbook under former coordinator Chan Gailey.
While Fitzpatrick had the liberty to change plays and even call his own at times, Tagovailoa said he did not have the comfort level needed to do so.
“I wasn’t as comfortable just in general. I wasn’t comfortable calling plays. … I just didn’t have the comfortability of kind of checking plays, alerting plays and doing that. I just rode with the play even if I knew in a way that it wasn’t going to work. I was going to try to make it work still.”
When asked to further clarify his comments, he said:
“Actually, what I’m saying is that I didn’t actually know the playbook necessarily really, really good, and that’s on no one else’s fault but my fault,” Tagovailoa said. “Our play calls were simple when I was in. I didn’t have alerts and checks whereas now, feeling more comfortable, I can kind of maneuver my way through these things now.”
Dolphins coach Brian Flores downplayed Tagovailoa’s comments about not knowing the playbook, saying that was more of an indication of his growth and improving comfort level this offseason.
“Honestly, I just think he’s comparing last year to where he is right now — and I get it. I understand that. I think he’s thinking about where he is right now versus that time a year ago, just reflecting, and that’s good because this time of year is about reflection, and where you are now versus six months ago.”
Tagovailoa has expressed greater comfort with the new offense, under co-offensive coordinators George Godsey and Eric Studesville, and feels significantly healthier after his college hip injury more than 18 months ago.
“I think my hip feels 10 times better than it did last year and the confidence level for myself, I feel really confident coming into this second year after that injury two years ago,” he said. “As far as in how I feel overall, both physically and mentally, I think I’m at a better stage than I was last year.”
Dolphins receiver DeVante Parker also seems confident that Tagovailoa will be much more consistent this season after completing just 64 percent of his passes for 11 touchdowns and five interceptions as a rookie. He also had a 92.5 passer rating, which ranked 23rd in the NFL.
Parker said during offseason workouts he noticed an improvement in Tagovailoa’s footwork and mechanics, which have allowed him to throw the ball quicker after the snap.
Parker hopes having a greater feel for how Tagovailoa will throw a certain pass, where he needs to position himself on the field, and how to adjust when plays are disrupted show their strengthened continuity.
“Everybody knows each other better than what we had before,” said Parker.