Report: Former Alabama Standout Tua Tagovailoa Signs Contract Extension with Dolphins

The Crimson Tide product had been in negotiations for a new deal for quite some time.

Jan 9, 2022; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) reacts with / Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

Former Alabama standout and current Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa signed a 4-year, $212.4 million contract extension with his team on Friday, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

Tagovailoa's $53.1 million annual salary is third in the league, only trailing fellow quarterbacks Joe Burrow and Trevor Lawrence, two players he's more than familiar with during his time in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Tagovailoa and the Dolphins had been working towards an extension for quite some time, and the differences between both parties caused the quarterback to hold out throughout a decent chunk of the offseason. He returned on May 20 for OTAs but didn't really participate in the opening days of training camp. Tagovailoa even rejected an extension offer by Miami in late May, per ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

Tagovailoa signed a 4-year, $30.275 million contract shortly after he was selected with the fifth overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft. He's heading into the fifth and final year of his rookie contract and was guaranteed a base salary of $23.17 million this season.

This offseason has been friendly to other franchise quarterbacks in need of a new contract, as Detroit Lions' Jared Goff signed a 4-year, $212 million extension on May 13 and Jacksonville Jaguars' Trevor Lawrence agreed to a five-year, $275 million extension on June 13. Part of the reason why negotiations with the 26-year-old had taken so long was because he wanted a similar deal to Goff and Lawrence, among others.

When asked if Goff's $53 million per year contract sets a benchmark for his negotiations on June 4, Tagovailoa said "The market is the market. If we didn't have a market, none of that would matter. That's what I would say. The market is the market," per The 33rd Team's Ari Meirov.

This is certainly an understandable request, as he threw an NFL-best 4,624 yards this past season, while also tallying 29 passing touchdowns en route to his first Pro Bowl appearance. He has notably improved every season since his rookie campaign.

Tagovailoa will now continue to gain chemistry with former Alabama teammate and Miami wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, who signed a three-year, $84.75 million contract extension that includes $76 million guaranteed on May 30. The 25-year-old, who is now the NFL's No. 4 highest-paid receiver, has tallied over 1,000 yards in each of his first three seasons and has become one of the more prominent pass-catchers in the league. Waddle's best season thus far came into 2022, as he logged 1,356 receiving yards for eight touchdowns on a league-high 18.1 yards per reception.

Additionally, on May 21, NFL Network's Cameron Wolfe reported that Tagovailoa has lost some weight in order to move around more inside and outside of the pocket.

“Down to 220 pounds—from what I understand—dropped 10-15 pounds this offseason already from the 230s where he was last year,” Wolfe said. “He wants to be agile, a little bit more escapability from the bulked up version that was in the 230s last year.”