Herbstreit: McDaniel has molded Tagovailoa into an ‘alpha’

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

Kirk Herbstreit: Mike McDaniel has molded Tua Tagovailoa into an ‘alpha’

By Michael Gallagher | Last updated 11/29/23

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is quietly having an MVP-caliber season.

Four seasons after being drafted fifth overall, Tagovailoa is finally living up to the expectations the Dolphins front office had for him when they made that selection, and ESPN analyst/broadcaster Kirk Herbstreit recently disclosed during a recent appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” that believes it’s because of head coach Mike McDaniel.

“I’ve never seen a guy change more from who he was in college as a national champion to who he is now as an NFL player,” Herbstreit said. “… Mike McDaniel comes in and teaches him how to think and believe, even become his own independent self,” “So, I think [it’s] much bigger than [growing] as a football player — I think he’s grown as a person, and I think you now have a very different individual.”

Tua Tagovailoa, NFL

Passer Rating 5th
Yards Per Attempt 2nd
TDs 2nd
Yards 2nd
Completion Pct. 3rd
Interception Pct. 23rd pic.twitter.com/uXNx6GwN0N
— Joe Schad (@schadjoe) November 25, 2023

Aside from the noticeable on-field growth, Herbstreit says Tagovailoa has matured in other ways too — most noticeably his temperament.

He pointed to a late-August incident in which Tagovailoa clapped back at NFL analyst Ryan Clark for calling him overweight and compared his body to that of a stripper as an example of Tagovailoa’s newfound swagger.

#Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa responds to ESPN's Ryan Clark, who accused him of not working out this offseason:

“I would appreciate it if you kept my name out of your mouth.”

pic.twitter.com/ixNx8bd5rC
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) August 23, 2023

“I think that stuff with Ryan Clark questioning him, like, Tua would have never come back at him when he was in that different, younger Tua,” Herbstreit added. “Now he kind of gets bristled. … The reason I tell you all of that is when you’re watching him, you’re not just watching a guy that’s executing Mike McDaniel’s offense. You’re watching a guy that has really become the alpha of this Dolphin team.”

The 25-year-old Tagovailoa is having the best season of his career. He's just three touchdowns and 371 passing yards shy of setting new career bests in both, and he’s one of just four QBs to play in 10 or more games and be sacked fewer than 20 times.

Tagovailoa is averaging the third-most passing yards per game in the NFL (288.8), and he ranks third in completion percentage (69.8) and touchdowns (22) and fourth in passer rating (103.7).

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