Tua Tagovailoa explains his moment on the field after his first NFL passes

After a college hip injury and almost a year of recovery, Tua Tagovailoa threw his first NFL passes on Sunday. He reflected afterward.

Before Sunday, the last time Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was on a football field playing against an opponent, it was November 16, 2019 at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi against Mississippi State. That’s where Tagovailoa, after completing 14 of 18 passes for 256 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions for the Alabama Crimson Tide, suffered the hip injury that ended his collegiate career, and put his professional future in doubt. It didn’t affect his draft position much — the Dolphins selected him with the fifth overall pick — but the way back was still a long one. With truncated offseason programs and no preseason, there was no way for Tagovailoa to get the hang of the NFL before it started in a regular–season sense.

That’s why, as much as the stat line didn’t indicate it, Tagovailoa’s first NFL performance on Sunday against the Jets in a 24-0 blowout for the Dolphins was such a big deal. He completed two of two passes for nine yards, and neither throw was all that challenging, but that wasn’t the most important thing.

The most important thing was that Tagovailoa looked… well, like he looked back at Alabama. Efficient, mobile, and accurate. It’s what everybody involved wanted to see.

After the game, Tagovailoa had to stay on the field at Hard Rock Stadium, just to contemplate what he’d been through.

“I think it was a very special moment for me because my parents weren’t here, so I couldn’t really remember where we ended our drive at, so I tried to sit close to where we ended our drive at, and I ended up FaceTiming my parents because they couldn’t be here,” Tagovailoa said after the game. “That’s usually how it goes. I usually talk to my parents after the game, and my parents usually never miss my game. That’s what I did, I went out there, and I talked to them. But yeah, that’s what that moment was about.”

Starting quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick gave Tagovailoa some good-natured grief after the game because his completions were so easy, but Tagovailoa was happy to take it.

“I feel healthy. I think it was a great play call by [offensive coordinator] Chan [Gailey] to kind of get things going for me. It was an easy completion, and everyone can say that; I can roll out and throw it to someone who’s 2 yards down the field. But you’ve got to deal with pressure, and there’s just a lot going on in such a little play like that. But I think a lot of credit with that easy completion goes to Chan and then also goes to our O-line. Our O-line played their butts off today.”

In truth, Fitzpatrick was pulling for Tagovailoa all the way — even when Tagovailoa went into the game in garbage time, and the small crowd in attendance was chanting Tua’s name.

“I definitely could hear it. There was nothing else playing in the stadium, so I could hear that, 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. You have a 16-year vet like ‘Fitz’  who has no animosity towards it, as well, who’s just been supportive the 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 there’s guys like… He’s just very personable off the field, as well. I could say a lot about him but just won’t have enough time.”

The 3-3 Dolphins now have a bye, and they’ll take on the Rams at home on November 1. We’ll see if Tagovailoa gets a second chance to make a first impression.