Tua Tagovailoa threw the biggest pass of his football career in Atlanta, and now could call the city home to his NFL career.
The Falcons reportedly will have interest in signing Tagovailoa after he was cut Wednesday by the Dolphins, who are taking on the biggest dead salary-cap charge in NFL history ($99 million) to move on.
Tagovailoa could be the most desirable quarterback on the free-agent market given that he already has had NFL success – 44-32 career record with 120 touchdown passes compared to 59 interceptions and single seasons leading the league in completion percentage and passing yards – and just turned 28 years old. He also comes on the cheap to his team because of the guaranteed money owed to him by the Dolphins.
The Dolphins released Tua Tagovailoa on Monday. USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con The downside is that Tagovailoa has a long history of concussions and is coming off a season in which he was benched for rookie Quinn Ewers.
The Falcons’ interest makes a lot of sense. Former first-round pick Michael Penix Jr. hasn’t lived up to expectations through two seasons, and they are taking their own big dead-cap charge to release backup Kirk Cousins.
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Tagovailoa would challenge Penix – or even get the nod over him – under first-year head coach Kevin Stefanski. Pairing up those two would make Atlanta the left-handed capital of quarterbacking.
Once upon a time, Tagovailoa threw a national-title-winning walk-off touchdown pass to DeVonta Smith as Alabama beat Georgia in the 2018 College Football Playoff Championship Game in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Michael Penix has had an up-and-down two years in Atlanta. Getty Images Tagovailoa is also seen as a desirable option for the quarterback-needy Jets, who offer a chance to be the unquestioned starter and exact revenge on the Dolphins twice per year. But they play outside in the Northeast cold at MetLife Stadium as compared to the comforts of a dome offered to the Hawaii native.
The Dolphins tried and failed to find a trade partner for Tagovailoa. One team reportedly was willing to take on his bloated contract if the Dolphins included a first-round draft pick.
