ESPN Quarterback Rankings: Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa

Tagovailoa is ranked outside of the top ten in the most recent ESPN quarterback rankings.

Jan 13, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) before taking the snap against the Kansas City Chiefs during the second half of the 2024 AFC wild card game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. / Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

The NFL off-season is approaching, with training camp around the corner. 

Recently, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler published a list of compiled rankings from NFL executives, coaches, and scouts, which listed Tua Tagovailoa as 14th among his peers.

To no one’s surprise, the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes is at the top of the list. AFC East rival Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills is third on the list, and the New York Jets’ Aaron Rodgers is eighth.  The rankings had Detroit’s Jared Goff at ninth, with Tagovailoa’s draft classmates, Joe Burrow of the Bengals and Justin Herbert of the Chargers, ranking second and sixth, respectively.

Also among the top 10 are the Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson in fourth and the Los Angeles Rams’ Matthew Stafford in fifth. C.J. Stroud of the Houston Texans was seventh, and the Dallas Cowboys’ Dak Prescott rounded out the top ten. 

Joining Tagovailoa outside of the top ten are the San Francisco 49ers Brock Purdy and the Philadelphia Eagles Jalen Hurts. Neither Trevor Lawrence nor the Green Bay Packers’ Jordan Love made it to the top end of the list. 

Few quarterback contract extensions around the NFL were signed heading into the 2024 season.

While Lawrence and Goff signed extensions, the Dolphins and the Tagovailoa camp don’t seem to agree on his “market value.”

Throughout the off-season, the fifth-year quarterback and the organization have been back-and-forth in contractual talks, with an extension not seeming imminent. 

With Lawrence agreeing to an extension early in the offseason, Prescott and Love rumors have it that they are contract extension conversations. However, regarding those quarterbacks and Tagovailoa, the “market” is a fluid one.

Should one or both Love and Prescott agree to an extension, negotiations with Tagovailoa’s agents could be further complicated.

The Dolphins could not move from their number, allowing Tagovailoa to bet on himself. Should it get past that, a franchise tag could be an option and fallback for Miami. 

The Dolphins veterans report to training camp a week from Tuesday, with the looming talks of Tagovailoa’s contract situation a possible backdrop and distraction this summer.