Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa described a stark contrast between the styles of his current head coach Mike McDaniel and his former head coach, current Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, on the Dan Le Batard Show on Monday.
Tagovailoa was asked about the differences between the two coaches, and Tagovailoa bluntly described Flores’ style as an abrasive one.
“Well, to put it in simplest terms, if you woke up every morning and I told you, ‘You suck at what you did, that you don’t belong doing what you do, that you shouldn’t be here, that this guy should be here, that you haven’t earned this,’” Tagovailoa said. “And then you have somebody else come in (McDaniel) and tell you, ‘Dude, you are the best fit for this, like you are accurate, you are the best whatever. You are this, you are that.’ Like how would it make you feel listening to one or the other?”
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Flores coached the Dolphins from 2019 to 2021. He was fired in January 2022 — and McDaniel was hired in February 2022 — after posting a 24-25 record in three seasons at the helm. Tagovailoa entered the league in 2020, when he threw for 1,814 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions in 10 games.
Tagovailoa threw for roughly 2 1/2 times that number of yards last season, adding 29 touchdowns against 14 interceptions. He helped lead Miami to an 11-6 record.
Tagovailoa said that the coaching methods affected his confidence and over the last few years he’s felt like he regained confidence after being criticized so heavily during his time under Flores.
“Regardless of what it is, the good or the bad,” he said. “You hear it more and more, you start to actually believe that.”
“And so that’s sort of like what ended up happening. It’s basically been what two years of training that out of — not just me but, you know, a couple of the guys as well that have been here since my rookie year all the way till now.”
The Dolphins recently signed Tagovailoa to a four-year, $212.4 million contract extension that makes him one of the NFL’s highest-paid quarterbacks.
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