This offseason, the Miami Dolphins cut ties with former franchise quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
The writing was on the wall for Tagovailoa’s time in Miami, as he was benched for the final three games of the 2025 season.
And with a new front office and coaching staff stepping in, they decided it was best for the Miami Dolphins to move on from Tagovailoa.
Tua Tagovailoa Shares True Feelings on Miami Dolphins Head Coach
Despite his declining play in 2025, the decision was not an easy one for the Dolphins. Tagovailoa had over $54 million guaranteed in 2026, and his release represented the largest amount of dead cap a team has taken on after releasing a player.
After his release, Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley quickly moved on and signed former Green Bay Packers quarterback Malik Willis to a three-year, $67 million contract with $45 million guaranteed.
Tagovailoa quickly found a new home with the Atlanta Falcons as he signed a one-year contract on a team that was seeking a quarterback to compete with Michael Penix Jr. for the starting job. Now, after Tagovailoa played against the Dolphins in a 17-12 Atlanta Falcons preseason win, the former Miami quarterback has shared his thoughts on Sullivan and Hafley, as well as his departure from the team.
After the game, Tagovailoa said: “It wasn’t fun being in my position, but outside of that, I wasn’t playing up to the standard I had been playing in years past. You have to be real with yourself… Hafley and Sully were really good in that process with me.”
Dolphins Decision to Release Tagovailoa
Previously, Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley had spoken about the decision to release Tagovailoa, as well as All-Pro receiver Tyreek Hill. At the time, Hafley said: “The cap situation was really difficult, so we had to get in a healthier spot as far as the cap goes, so we had to make some really hard decisions with some really good players, who I have a ton of respect for, and they are still going to have a lot of success in this league. We just weren’t in the situation where we were able to keep them as we build this thing going forward. Hard decisions are made, really good players had to leave the team, and now we find ourselves in a position where we just drafted 13 players… We’re going to be young.”
While this new regime’s time with Tagovailoa was short, it appears things ended amicably between them.
In the game against Miami, Tagovailoa went 7-for-8 for 95 passing yards. He also lost a fumble after he failed to secure a snap from his center.
As far as how the fans reacted to his return and if he heard the boos, Tagovailoa said: “Of course I did. I’ve had 6 years here, and those are probably some of the best 6 years of my life… regardless of the reaction, I love the city.”
Despite a poor end to his tenure in Miami, Tagovailoa left the team with the fourth-most passing yards and fourth-most passing touchdowns in franchise history.
Tua Tagovailoa Shares True Feelings on Dolphins Head Coach