MIAMI (AP) – The Miami Dolphins need a good game on Sunday to make sure they can keep playing, and that’s especially true for Tua Tagovailoa.
With one more dud, the rookie quarterback could watch the final minutes from the sidelines as Miami tries to secure a playoff berth in Buffalo.
Coach Brian Flores put Tagovailoa on the bench twice in the fourth quarter, including last week in Las Vegas, when backup quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick saved Miami by overcoming a few late shortages.
“The expectation for myself is very high,” said Tagovailoa on Wednesday. “It is clear that I have not played to that standard in the past week.”
FitzMagic kept the Dolphins (10-5) in control of their chances of Sunday’s regular season finale against the Bills. It also fueled the debate among the quarterbacks on Monday morning about who should be the Miami quarterback on Sunday afternoon.
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Throughout the year, Flores has been brave to decide on the matter. He promoted Tagovailoa to No. 1 for Game 7, even though Miami had a two-game winning streak and Fitzpatrick played well.
Flores has also shown a willingness to put Tagovailoa off the hook, despite the risk that he could spark the confidence of a 22-year-old who has been called up as a potential franchise quarterback.
“I am very at peace with the decisions that I and we make because it is sincere, real and authentic based on winning games,” said Flores.
Tagovailoa is 6-2 as a starter, and Flores said the rookie will tie the knot again at Buffalo and give Miami the best chance of winning.
There’s no sign that the precarious quarterback situation has divided the team, in part because Tagovailoa and 38-year-old Fitzpatrick are model locker room citizens who have developed a close relationship.
That was evident late in the Raiders game, when Fitzpatrick threw a touchdown pass to put the Dolphins ahead and was greeted from the sidelines by Tagovailoa with a festive flying shoulder bump.
There’s a lot to celebrate: despite the revolving door at QB, the Dolphins are well on their way to hitting 400 points for the first time since 1986 and are on the cusp of only their third playoff berth since 2001.
Credit both Tagovailoa and Fitzpatrick for making a two-quarterback system work.
“The only people it should really affect are Fitz and Tua,” said Mike Gesicki. “And they are doing a great job. You always see that Fitz helps Tua, supports Tua Fitz. They’ve done a great job of it and just kind of understand each other’s roles. “
Tagovailoa’s role was as a game manager, and he did it well by avoiding mistakes and letting the dolphins’ dominant defense take game-changing moves. Fitzpatrick’s role was to release and rally the troops.
Statistics reflect the contrasting styles. Notable for a rookie, Tagovailoa has the lowest number of interceptions in the NFL, with two in 232 passes.
“That’s a good place to start as a quarterback,” said Flores.
Fitzpatrick ranks 32nd in the number of interceptions. But he’s 14th at an average of 11.4 meters per completion, while Tagovailoa is 34th at 9.6.
Tagovailoa’s biggest gain all year is 35 yards. About 52 NFL players have thrown a longer completion, including three receivers.
“Pushing the ball to the field – that’s what I need to do better,” he said.
Offensive coordinator Chan Gailey said blaming Tagovailoa for Miami’s dink-and-dump approach is wrong.
“We are a team that has tried to drive nine, 10, 11, 12 times, play football, pass action and check the time on the clock,” said Gailey. “That’s the situation we found with Tua in the ball game.”
In the past two weeks, Tagovailoa has only thrown 145 and 94 meters. Such modest productivity heightens speculation that the Dolphins will line up another quarterback in the first round in April, when they may well pick number 3 because they own Houston’s roster.
For the time being, Flores will stay with Tagovailoa, although that may change in the second half on Sunday.
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