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A move fully closed the door on the relationship between Tagovailoa and Miami
The Miami Dolphins parted ways with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa shortly before free agency was set to begin. The quarterback was benched by former head coach Mike McDaniel during the final three games of the 2025 season, and after a new regime was brought to Miami, it appeared they no longer wanted Tagovailoa as the face of the franchise.
Tagovailoa spent six seasons with the team after being drafted with the fifth overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. He became the team’s starter during his rookie season, but was then benched in favor of veteran quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick after Tagovailoa struggled. Tagovailoa would bounce back, and even lead the league in passing yards during the 2023 season, but his declining performance during the 2025 season resulted in Miami releasing him despite a large dead money hit.
Now, the team has announced a move that closes the door even further.
Miami Dolphins Receiver Will Wear Tagovailoa’s Number
The Miami Dolphins signed free agent wide receiver Jalen Tolbert to a one-year contract this offseason, and the team announced that the receiver will wear Tagovailoa’s old No. 1 number. Tagovailoa, who used the No. 13 during his college football days in Alabama, had to choose a different number with the Dolphins as No. 13 is retired for Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Marino.
While Dolphins fans might have hoped Tagovailoa would ultimately receive the same fate as Marino in Miami, his performance was not enough to merit his number being retired. Despite this, the argument could be made that Tagovailoa has been the third-best quarterback in franchise history.
Statistically speaking, his numbers fall short of only Marino, but 70s quarterback Bob Griese was selected to the Hall of Fame and led the Dolphins to the team’s only two Super Bowl wins.
Only Marino had more passing yards and touchdowns in any season than Tagovailoa did in 2023. Additionally, Tagovailoa is third in total wins as a Dolphins quarterback, and fourth in total passing yards, behind Ryan Tannehill.
Tua Tagovailoa’s Future
The former Dolphins quarterback will now hope to turn his career around after signing with the Atlanta Falcons on a one-year contract. Because Miami is still on the hook for his salary during the 2026 season, the Falcons were able to sign him to a minimum contract.
Miami’s former quarterback admitted that his play was not up to his standard during the 2025 season as he told reporters during his introductory press conference, “If you’re looking at last year, my play wasn’t up to the standard of the way I’ve been playing football in the past three years since the new contract. So just got to play better football. That’s what that really means. There’s no other way to sugarcoat that or go around that.”
He also appeared to take a shot at former Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel as he said, “Yeah, you know, I don’t want to get too much in depth with things that were going on, more so in terms of players to coaches than it was players to players, but it was unique, in a sense. It was unique.”
Jose Esquer Jose Esquer is a Mexican-American sportswriter and communications student based in San Diego, CA. His work spans football, basketball, baseball, and soccer. He has written for platforms like RotoWire and DolphinsTalk. You can find him on Twitter/X @JEsquer8, usually talking Dolphins, world football, or both. More about Jose Esquer
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