Tua Tagovailoa is a thoughtful person. After his NFL debut Sunday for the Miami Dolphins in a 24-0 victory over the New York Jets, the first-round pick decided to soak in the circumstances.
On the field … in full uniform … to appreciate how far he has come since being injured in his final year at Alabama.
Tua just walked out and sat on field pic.twitter.com/1dLOZiCTpZ
— Dave Hyde (@davehydesports) October 18, 2020
Tua Tagovailoa said he went down to the field to FaceTime his parents since they couldn’t be there to watch him play. He tried to find exactly where his drive ended and he said it was a special moment. pic.twitter.com/0AXRwO4b1c
— Cameron Wolfe (@CameronWolfe) October 18, 2020
Tagovailoa went 2-for-2 for 9 yards and became the first left-handed quarterback to complete a pass since Kellen Moore for the Dallas Cowboys in Week 17 of the 2015 season.
“Yeah, I definitely could hear it. There’s nothing else playing in the stadium, so I could hear that,” Tagovailoa said. “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 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.”
Tua Tagovailoa went back to the field and he’s sitting around the 15-yard-line in full uniform. It looks like he’s soaking this moment in.
On November 16, 2019, Tua suffered a potentially career-ending injury. On October 18, 2020, he threw his first NFL passes. pic.twitter.com/q5OHSNQe2c
— Cameron Wolfe (@CameronWolfe) October 18, 2020
Ryan Fitzpatrick was happy for the backup QB, who is the future in Miami.
“That was just a cool moment for him, just the reception from the crowd that was here and us on the sideline,” the Harvard grad said about the Alabama star.
Tagovailoa said he Face-Timed with his parents who follow his career closely but could not be at the game due to everything that the COVID-19 pandemic has entailed.
“The biggest thing that really stands out to me is just being able to make my parents proud,” Tagovailoa said. “Whether that’s Tua as a football player, Tua as a person, Tua as a son, I think that’s what brings me the most joy is seeing how happy my parents get and then seeing how happy my family gets as well with who I am and also what I do.”
