Miami Dolphins

Some fans may not be sure whether Tua Tagovailoa is worth his massive new extension, but Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel apparently had no doubts.

Tagovailoa said McDaniel's belief in his quarterback played a pivotal role in getting a deal done.

"Word gets around quick. I don't think he knows that I know, but I've been told from several birdies that are here in the facilities, that are upstairs as well, that [McDaniel] went to bat for me," Tagovailoa told reporters Sunday (10:50 in video). "The day that I went out and practiced 11-on-11, 7-on-7, before we went on that little break, he went to bat for me with our owner. I don't go into details into things I heard were said, but he is what he says."

Tagovailoa signed a four-year, $212.4 million contract with the Dolphins on Friday. The deal carries $93.1 million in full guarantees, but from a practical standpoint he's guaranteed around $167.1 million.

The 2025 season will be pivotal in how Tagovailoa's future plays out. He's due a massive $54 million base salary for the 2026 season that fully guarantees at the start of the 2025 league year. It's a virtual certainty he'll be getting that $54 million regardless of how this season plays out.

However, Tagovailoa is also scheduled to have a $68.4 million cap number in 2026. If the Dolphins are satisfied with him as their starting quarterback, they'll either restructure his deal or negotiate a new extension to lower that number. That's basic cap math.

If the Dolphins are unsure whether Tagovailoa is their guy, they could explore a trade or allow him to play out the 2026 season with that massive number.

Tagovailoa led the NFL in passing last season (4,624 yards), but Miami went 1-5 against playoff teams and faltered in the Wild Card Round against the Kansas City Chiefs. Questions about Tagovailoa's ability to excel against elite competition and his health undoubtedly played a factor in the structure of his contract.

The Miami Dolphins and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa have agreed to a four-year, $212.4 million extension, per Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. ESPN's Adam Schefter added that Tagovailoa will be receiving $167 million guaranteed.

Before the extension, Tagovailoa was set to enter 2024 on the final year of his rookie deal after the Dolphins picked up his fifth year option for $23,171,000. Now he's under contract with the Dolphins through 2028. Per Garafolo, Tagovailoa's $53.1 million per-season average is the highest for a four-year contract in NFL history.

The yearly salary breakdown and cap numbers for Tagovailoa's contract are unknown at this time, so gauging its impact on the salary cap from 2025-2028 isn't entirely feasible as of yet.

However, we can still take some looks ahead. Per Over the Cap, the Dolphins' cap number this year is a shade over $9 million. Tagovailoa's extension has no impact on 2024, so that figures to remain the same.

Before Tagovailoa's contract, the Dolphins' cap space numbers for 2025-2028 were as follows, per Over the Cap:

• 2025: -$5,889,776

• 2026: $52,813,978

• 2027: $223,973,915

Prior to Tagovailoa's deal, the Dolphins only had wide receiver Jaylen Waddle (three-year, $84.75 million extension) on the 2028 ledger ($37,208,456 cap number). The Dolphins also have a void year for edge-rusher Bradley Chubb ($2,750,000 cap number) there as well.

Obviously, the Dolphins were going to have to do some work on the 2025 ledger in particular regardless of the new contract, but obviously general manager Chris Grier has a year to get the cap in shape.

But for now, the Dolphins are certainly pleased to extend Tagovailoa and head into the season without him under a long-term contract.

The 26-year-old is coming off his two best seasons, both of which ended in Miami playoff berths. Last season, the Dolphins finished second in scoring while Tagovailoa threw for an NFL-high 4,624 yards alongside 29 touchdowns (14 interceptions) and a 69.3 percent completion rate.

The Miami Dolphins remain committed to Tua Tagovailoa.

Miami and the quarterback agreed to a new four-year, $212.4 million contract on Friday, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo. The deal includes $167.1 million guaranteed.

Miami made Tagovailoa its franchise quarterback when it selected him with the No. 5 overall pick of the 2020 NFL draft, which was the same year fellow signal-callers Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert and Jalen Hurts were chosen.

Yet the Alabama product was inconsistent to start his career, which led to no shortage of trade rumors at times.

Miami was even connected to Tom Brady after the legend's retirement, and Josina Anderson of CBS Sports reported before the decision to pick up Tagovailoa's fifth-year option that the team would "explore all options at quarterback."

The final answer turned out to be keeping Tua on a longer deal after he turned the corner the past two seasons flanked by Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.

Hill, in particular, seemed pleased following the news of his quarterback's new deal:

Tagovailoa threw for 3,548 yards, 25 touchdowns, and eight interceptions while going 8-5 as a starter and helping lead the Dolphins to the playoffs during the 2022 campaign. He then completed 69.3 percent of his passes for a league-best 4,624 yards, 29 touchdowns and 14 picks in 2023.

While Miami disappointed with a first-round exit in the playoffs, Tagovailoa at least played every game. That was an important development since injuries were a major storyline for him after he suffered multiple concussions in 2022 that ended up keeping him out of that postseason.

Now the Dolphins hope he can continue his recent trajectory and find some postseason success after they showed renewed faith in him with Friday's decision.

As he continues to wait to receive a contract extension from the Miami Dolphins, star quarterback Tua Tagovailoa gave the team a taste of what life would be like without him.

Per Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network, Tagovailoa didn't participate in the second day of practice at Dolphins training camp on Thursday. Wolfe pointed out that he saw a "much different Miami offense" without Tagovailoa under center and the team's defense "dominated again."

Tagovailoa was a limited participant in Miami's first day of practice on Wednesday. ESPN's Marcel Louis-Jacques noted that he fully participated in individual and 7-on-7 drills, but he took just two snaps in 11-on-11 drills, both of which were handoffs to the running back.

Tagovailoa's limited participation is similar to his workload during the Dolphins' offseason program, as he attended mandatory minicamp but skipped a portion of voluntary OTAs and didn't participate in 11-on-11 drills when he was present. Head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters on Wednesday to expect that trend to continue.

"It's very fluid," McDaniel said of Tagovailoa's practice status. "We're taking it day by day, today I expect it to be kind of like OTAs and we'll move on from there."

Tagovailoa is entering the final year of his contract and was expected to receive an extension, but that has yet to come to fruition. Other quarterbacks like Jared Goff of the Detroit Lions and Trevor Lawrence of the Jacksonville Jaguars cashed in with contract extensions worth $212 million and $275 million, respectively.

Still, Tagovailoa showed up for veteran report day on Tuesday instead of holding out. However, he sent the organization a clear message by sitting out on Thursday, so it would be wise for the Dolphins to meet his contract demands and avoid making their signal-caller unhappy.

Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel says Tua Tagovailoa's participation in practice will be "very fluid" as the quarterback seeks a long-term extension, Jonathan Jones reported for CBS.

McDaniel described Tagovailoa's situation as "day-to-day," per Jones.

Tagovailoa reported for training camp yesterday. It was not immediately clear if he planned to "hold in" by sitting out practice while awaiting a new deal, similarly to Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love.

Tagovailoa is currently set to play the 2024 season on a $23.2 million team option, but he is seeking a raise after leading the NFL with 4,624 passing yards last season.

The Alabama product also marked a personal-best 69.3 percent pass completion rate while earning the first Pro Bowl nod of his career.

NFL Network's Cameron Wolfe reported that Tagovailoa will participate in 7-on-7 drills, but sit out of full 11-on-11 exercises, during training camp.

McDaniel said that he has "no concerns about distractions" amid Tagovailoa's partial participation in practice, per Wolfe.

Tagovailoa's contract negotiations may be impacted by the way his 2023 season ended.

The quarterback struggled in losses to the Baltimore Ravens and Buffalo Bills to end the season. Tagovailoa threw four interceptions to just three touchdowns as the Dolphins failed to secure the AFC East title. He then threw for 199 yards, one score and one interception during the first postseason appearance of his career, a Wild Card loss on the road to the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Dolphins also could be considering Tagovailoa's injury history in negotiations. The quarterback has said he considered retirement after missing six games due to concussions in 2022, and was again sidelined last season for the Pro Bowl Games while in concussion protocol.

ESPN's Adam Schefter previously reported that the disagreement between Tagovailoa and the Dolphins could come down to guaranteed money.

The league's four highest-paid quarterbacks of the Cincinnati Bengals' Joe Burrow, Jacksonville Jaguars' Trevor Lawrence, Detroit Lions' Jared Goff and Los Angeles Chargers' Justin Herbert all make more than $50 million per season with at least $110 million guaranteed.

Tagovailoa's injury history and lack of proven playoff success may have left the Dolphins reluctant to match those numbers, but the team will need to reach agreement soon if they want their quarterback a full participant in training camp before preseason begins August 9.

Former Middle Tennessee State punter Kyle Ulbrich wants an NFL job, and he isn't afraid to stand in front of the Miami Dolphins' team facility with signs advertising his career stats in an effort to get it.

Like, literally:

Ulbrich averaged 44.5 yards per punt during his four college seasons, with 67 punts that exceeded 50 yards. He was named first team All-C-USA in the 2022 season.

The Dolphins currently employ Jake Bailey at punter, who was both a Pro Bowler and first-team All-Pro selection for the New England Patriots in the 2020 season. It's safe to say he has a leg up on Ulbrich for the gig.

Miami Dolphins fans will have to wait a bit to see veteran wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. on the field with his new team.

Per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Beckham was placed on the active/physically unable to perform list at the start of training camp on Tuesday. Pelissero noted that the 31-year-old is "working through minor things and this is part of the plan for easing him back into football."

Beckham spent the 2023 season with the Baltimore Ravens and appeared in 14 games while recording 35 catches for 565 yards and three touchdowns. The Ravens released him in March and he signed with the Dolphins in May.

A three-time Pro Bowler, Beckham was one of the best receivers in the league before injuries derailed his promising career that began with three straight 1,000-yard seasons. The 2014 No. 12 pick suffered a fractured ankle in 2017 with the New York Giants, tore his ACL in 2020 with the Cleveland Browns, and tore his ACL once again in Super Bowl LVI while playing for the eventual champion Los Angeles Rams. The injury forced him to sit out the entire 2022 season.

By signing with the Dolphins, Beckham joined a talented receiving corps that is led by Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, who both recorded over 1,000 yards in each of the last two seasons. Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa will certainly enjoy having three game-changers on the outside.

After a disappointing end to the 2023 campaign that saw Miami lose the AFC East title in the last week of the season and get eliminated from the playoffs in the AFC Wild Card Round, the Dolphins are motivated to contend for a spot in the Super Bowl. A healthy Beckham surely would boost their chances of achieving their goal, so it can be expected that they will remain cautious with his recovery.

Tyreek Hill told reporters on Tuesday that he underwent stem cell treatments in Antigua this offseason in an effort to regenerate cells in his body and improve his overall blood flow, and feels great heading into his age-30 season.

"Let's just say on a few of them I ran backwards," he added when asked how his conditioning tests went. "That's how easy it was. Tell the Dolphins to bring it harder."

Hill also addressed his contract situation with reporters on Tuesday, noting that his main focus going forward is remaining with the Dolphins:

Obviously, I let [my agent] Drew [Rosenhaus] and the team handle that and that situation. The only thing I told Drew [was], 'Do not get me traded, bro. Last time you did this, you got me traded.' That's been my only thing to him, I'm like—I want to stay here in Miami, man. Obviously, this is where family is now. Everybody loves it here—family loves it, wife loves it, kids love it. So, obviously I love it. I love playing for coach and my teammates are awesome. So, I wouldn't want to leave, man.

The relationship has been mutually beneficial.

In two seasons with Miami, Hill has registered an absurd 238 catches for 3,509 yards and 20 touchdowns, which comes out to an average of 119 catches for 1,754 yards and 10 touchdowns per season.

Those are video game numbers, though Hill acknowledged he may have been a bit too focused on his individual statistics last season in the quest to reach 2,000 receiving yards:

He noted that his goals heading into the 2024 season were team-oriented first and foremost—winning a playoff game and then winning a title.

Granted, a healthy and productive Hill putting up absurd numbers would absolutely help in that regard.

Despite speculation that it will take a new contract to keep star wide receiver Tyreek Hill happy with the Miami Dolphins, he made it clear that he doesn't intend to ruffle any feathers.

While speaking to reporters at the start of training camp on Tuesday, Hill said he told his agent Drew Rosenhaus that he doesn't want to be traded from the Dolphins despite the uncertainty over whether he'll receive a new deal this year.

As he begins his ninth year in the NFL, Hill is entering the second year of the four-year, $120 million contract extension he signed with the Dolphins in 2022. However, he's set to make just $19.7 million this season, which is low on the totem pole of elite receivers following the booming market that saw multiple players receive massive contract extensions this offseason.

However, it appears that the 30-year-old is less concerned about money than many believe. Hill said earlier this month during an appearance on SportsCenter that he's confident the Dolphins will pay him what he's worth when the time is right, and his main focus is helping the team contend for a spot in the Super Bowl.

"I'm just very glad the position that I'm in now, man," Hill said. "The reason I say that is: I know when it's time for me to get a deal, the Miami Dolphins will do what's right. I'm very content with where I'm at right now. My mindset and my focus right now is making sure that I'm able to help this team win it all, which is the Super Bowl, and I'm real content with that. I'm going into Year 9 now. Money is the least of our worries right now."

Hill led the NFL with 1,799 receiving yards last season, and he's motivated to be even better in 2024. If the eight-time Pro Bowler continues to perform at a high level, the Dolphins undoubtedly will do whatever it takes to keep him in the fold for the foreseeable future.