The buzz surrounding the Dolphins and Chargers clash in Week 10 was centered nearly exclusively around the first of many presumed duels between rookie quarterbacks from the top of the 2020 NFL Draft — Justin Herbert, the 6th overall pick, on one side and Tua Tagovailoa, the 5th overall pick, on the other. It may not have been everything you wanted it to be if you were pulling for a clash like Tagovailoa’s clash with Joe Burrow from last year’s LSU versus Alabama clash in Tuscaloosa. That night, we saw Burrow and Tagovailoa combine for 811 passing yards, 7 passing touchdowns and a total of 87 points in a 46-41 LSU victory to catapult Burrow up draft boards and LSU towards their 2019/2020 National Championship.
Here? In Week 10? We saw Tagovailoa make the most of his limited opportunities amid a conservative game plan and Herbert do his best to push back from a 14-0 Dolphins 1st-quarter lead. There was still plenty of drama. Herbert accounted for three scores between his arm and his legs — but he also ended up logging the worst start of his young NFL career against the Dolphins. Herbert finished the day with 187 passing yards, but 58 of them came on the Chargers’ final possession — down 15 points with less than 4 minutes remaining in the contest.
But what about Tagovailoa?
He didn’t post the best numbers of his career — but he’s clearly gaining a better command of Miami’s offense. He was vocal before the snap, identifying defenders and communicating with his skill players from behind center. And then there were the plays under duress, such as when he spun out of a potential sack from Jerry Tillery just before halftime and unleashed a throw to his right that just barely missed WR Jakeem Grant for what would have been a touchdown to move Miami’s lead to 21-7 at the half. Miami would settle for a field goal there, but Tagovailoa’s elusiveness was key to keeping Miami in field goal range. And there was the errant snap that Tagovailoa corralled and lofted up to DeVante Parker off-schedule for a beautifully placed jump ball that Parker won for 23 yards.
Most impressive of all? Looking at NFL’s Next Gen Stats on Tagovailoa’s play. With tonight’s Monday Night Football game left pending, the Dolphins rookie logged the second highest average air yards per completion (8.2 yards) in the entire NFL in Week 10 and his 11.3 average intended air yards per attempt was the highest in the NFL for the week. Miami may not have put much on his plate, but Tagovailoa showed a willingness to push the gas pedal down with the opportunities he did get.
Yes, Tagovailoa got lucky on one attempt to TE Adam Shaheen, squeaking the ball through both hands of rookie LB Kenneth Murray to avoid an interception. And yet another attempt to TE Mike Gesicki up the seam was into the tightest of windows and nearly intercepted by LB Denzel Perryman off the deflection. But sometimes it is better to be lucky than good.
Fortunately for the Dolphins, Tagovailoa was both in Week 10.