Tua Tagovailoa had a wonderful season, which despite a postseason exit for the Miami Dolphins in the Wild Card round, saw considerable improvement. The last season saw Tagovailoa play a total of 13 games, as opposed to this year, which saw improvement with 17 games despite a significant number of injuries around him. Most of it is accorded to his jiu-jitsu practice, leading him to commit to another endeavor in order to step his QB game up.
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After successfully incorporating the martial arts practice, Tua Tagovailoa is working with a personal quarterback coach in the offseason. Fins Xtra revealed the details of the massive development, talking about this being the first for Tua. Damian Parson of AtoZ Sports, who brought it to the public eye, discovered the ‘interesting development‘ at the NFL Combine.
Tua Tagovialoa famously offers something to keep his fans intrigued every off-season, like his hairstyle experimentation. This time again, fans seemed interested in the whereabouts, posing questions and suggestions in the comments section. Such a fan inquired, “Well, who is this QB coach? What is he known for? Who has he worked with?”
Another enthusiast presented crude suggestions for Tua Tagovailoa, writing, “How can you fix – ability to check down – freezing in big moments.”
A fan seemed to hint in his rhetoric, writing, “Is this guy gonna make his arm stronger?”
“Well he needs a miracle maker!” wrote another fan who thought Tua Tagovailoa needed to put in more effort.
The Miami Dolphins had an 11-6 season, with the top position in the AFC East. However, they suffered a setback in the wild-card round in a 26-7 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. While the frigid conditions at the Arrowhead Stadium played their part, a depleted defense couldn’t stand against Patrick Mahomes-led offense. The offense’s issues complemented the loss as well, which according to Tua Tagovailoa ‘didn’t come together’.
Tua Tagovailoa Stepping Up His Game With the New QB Coach
Tua Tagovailoa, as mentioned earlier played only 13 games in the 2022 NFL regular season. Reportedly, the missing games were lost to concussions and a head injury in Week 3. However, he made an interesting choice of supplementing his practices with jiu-jitsu once a week. The Dolphins quarterback revealed that the practice helped him to train for shock absorption as well as protect his system from any future injuries.
“So I mean, with jiu-jitsu, I’ve been thrown airborne, I’ve been put in many uncomfortable positions for me to learn how to fall and try to react throughout those positions,” added Tagovailoa in the last offseason.
Relying on a dedicated quarterback coach or trainer is a usual practice for signal-callers who form an integral part of the offense. The practice is so popular that ‘QB Gurus’ engage with quarterbacks since their college football days. In fact, names like Steve Clarkson have helped some of the biggest quarterback stars like Ben Roethlisberger and Terrell Pryor to step up their game.
While Tua’s personal defense seems to have settled well for now, his offensive game has caught attention with a new QB coach in the mix. Per reports, Nick Hicks has been granted the responsibility to help Tua Tagovailoa to raise the bar. The reports also suggest that the star quarterback’s focus lies on improving his build as well as strength. Moreover, an update in footwork and mechanics is also expected to gear Tagovialoa up for the 2024 NFL regular season. beginning on Sept. 5, 2024.
