Tua Tagovailoa Makes NFL Debut As Dolphins Blowout The Jets

For the second year in a row, the Miami Dolphins are better than they should be. Under the tutelage of the head coach and former Bill Belichick disciple Brian Flores, the Dolphins have managed to remain competitive despite their lack of talent. They always seem to beat teams that they should and steal a win from a team hoping to cement their playoff seeds. On Sunday, the Dolphins held to form by dominating the Jets and NFL media punching bag head coach Adam Gase 24-0. A shutout. It was such a shutout in fact that late in the game the Dolphins pulled starting quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and put in their 2020 first-round pick Tua Tagovailoa, who completed his first two NFL passes while running out the clock.

When Tua came out, he got a major ovation from the sparse Miami crowd. “I definitely could hear it. There’s nothing else playing in the stadium, so I could hear that,” Tagovailoa said of the reception. “And that was awesome. But to just be out there with my teammates, being my first time, and getting the support and love from them, I think that was super awesome. And then you have a 16-year vet like Fitz, who has no animosity toward it as well, who’s just been supportive that entire time. Good drive, bad drive, he comes to the sideline and just talks through his process with why he did some things. I’m very fortunate to have a mentor like him who is just very encouraging on the field and then this guy is, like, he’s just very personable off the field as well.”

Fitzpatrick will remain the starter for the rest of the season barring injury, but Tua is the future of Miami football and if how hard all of his teammates, including Fitzpatrick, are rooting for him then he is already a beloved member of their organization.