The Miami Dolphins have decided to bench starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The move comes in the midst of Tagovailoa’s worst statistical season, including a career- and league-high 15 interceptions thrown in 14 games. His 88.5 passer rating is the worst of his career since his rookie season.
For a quarterback who led the league in passer rating in 2022, passing yards in 2023, and completion percentage in 2024, the fall off in 2025 has been precipitous. On Monday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers, he was 22-for-28 for 253 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, which appears like a decent stat line until you realize he had been 6-for-10 for 65 yards through the first three quarters of the game, racking up yards and touchdowns in the fourth quarter, with the game out of hand.
On Tuesday, head coach Mike McDaniel stated the quarterback play was “not good enough” against Pittsburgh and that “everything” was on the table. That, obviously, included replacing a quarterback who earned a Pro Bowl berth in 2024 and has a contract value of over $50 million per season.
Replacing Tagovailoa will be rookie Quinn Ewers, who was selected in the seventh round of the draft this year. He has been inactive for most of the year, but served as the second-string passer against the Cleveland Browns, entering the game late and going 5-for-8 for 53 yards.
Ewers spent one season at Ohio State in 2021, appearing in one game, before transferring to the University of Texas-Austin. As a member of the Longhorns, he threw for 9,128 yards with 68 touchdown and 24 interceptions in three seasons.
According to the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson, Ewers remained at the Dolphins facilities late on Tuesday, working with coaches to get up to speed on the team’s game plan for this weekend’s contest against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Miami is 6-8 on the season and was eliminated from the playoff picture with the loss to Pittsburgh on Monday.
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