Where Tua and Tyreek Need To Do a Better Job

Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa took an unnecessary hit to the head against the Los Angeles Rams on Monday night.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) moves out to pass as Los Angeles Rams linebacker Jared Verse (8) moves in during the second half at SoFi Stadium. / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Tua Tagovailoa overcame a rough first half to make a lot of plays for the Miami Dolphins in their Monday night victory against the Los Angeles Rams.

The Dolphins' offense clearly looks different from his back at quarterback — they signed — and there's reason to believe it still has another level to take.

But for that to happen, Tagovailoa will need to improve the protection part of his game.

First, he needs to start protecting the ball better because it has not been good in his three games back. The latest example is the interception and fumble against the Rams, the latter coming when he failed to secure the ball as Rams rookie edge defender Jared Verse was closing in on him.

That play should have been a sack, period. Not a sack, strip and fumble recovery for the Rams.

Interceptions will happen, so the pick he threw against the Rams can be forgiven, even though that was a poor decision to throw in traffic down the middle of the field without setting his feet.

At least Tagovailoa didn't have the mishandled snap issues that surfaced against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 8 and again against the Buffalo Bills.

More importantly, Tagovailoa must never forget what he did after his interception when he went down low to try to stop linebacker Christian Rozeboom on the return and ended up getting kicked in the head by Rozeboom's shin.

Thankfully, Tagovailoa could joke about the play after the game because there was no damage done.

"No, I didn't feel any of that," Tua said of the kick. "That was pretty bad tackling form, though. That was pretty terrible.

"I went up to that dude that intercepted me. I asked him, 'Bro, you couldn't have just run out of bounds or cut back?' I was like, 'You saw me and I saw you, you wanted to just run me over?' He told me after the game. He's like, 'There was no room there. There was nowhere else to go.' He has to do what he has to do to help his team win games. I wasn't planning on using my head to go hit that."

Instead of never planning on using his head, Tagovailoa should make sure he doesn't use his head on any tackle the second there's a turnover and he becomes a defender.

Since his return, he's done a good job of getting down at the end of scrambles, but this is another step.

As somebody who has covered the Dolphins for a long, long time, I do not recall Dan Marino ever making a tackle or that ever being an issue.

The Dolphins need Tua in the lineup, not making tackles. That should be pretty obvious by now.

MESSAGE TO TYREEK

While on the subject of not taking risks unnecessarily, feel free to call me old-fashioned here, but does Tyreek Hill really need to celebrate a touchdown by mimicking wrestling moves with a teammate, as was the case with Odell Beckham, Jr. last night?

Remember, Hill is nursing a wrist injury that had him questionable for the game against the Rams. He told ESPN that the injury involved a torn ligament. Oh, and before that, he was dealing with a foot injury he sustained in practice before the Arizona game in Week 8.

We're not asking Hill not to celebrate, but again, does it really have to involve an action that could cause issues if something goes awry?

As it was, Hill told NFL Network's Taylor Bisciotti, "It felt good, until Odell slammed my back out, man, you know? That kind of hurt me, so I'll probably miss Wednesday practice with that one."

never will plan a celebration with Odell again 😂 pic.twitter.com/E946kUHMyL

— Ty Hill (@cheetah) November 12, 2024

Understanding how Hill likes to troll and have fun, we always have to take comments like that with a grain of salt. He very well might sit out practice Wednesday — likely more because of the wrist injury or simply getting a vet rest day.

The point remains, though, that Hill really doesn't need to do anything to put himself in harm's way to celebrate a touchdown. This should be pretty obvious.