Report: Dolphins Exercise Tua Tagovailoa's $23.2M Contract Option; Won't Pursue FA QB

It appears Tua Tagovailoa will be the Miami Dolphins' quarterback through at least 2024.

Miami exercised the fifth-year option on his rookie contract Friday, guaranteeing the quarterback a $23.4 million salary for the 2024 season, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

According to Schefter, the move indicates the Dolphins "don't have any plans to sign any high-priced quarterbacks this offseason."

While the Dolphins selected the Alabama product with the No. 5 overall pick of the 2020 NFL draft and now made sure he will be under center for at least the next two seasons, it wasn't long ago that he seemed to be a potential trade target.

John McClain of the Houston Chronicle reported the Dolphins and Houston Texans were working to complete a Deshaun Watson trade during the 2021 season, which naturally would have placed Miami's starting quarterback on the trading block.

The Dolphins were connected to Watson—who was ultimately traded to the Cleveland Browns—since before the 2021 season even started, although Jeff Darlington of ESPN reported then-head coach Brian Flores addressed his team about the rumors and said Tagovailoa is "our quarterback."

That remains the case after this move.

Miami surely envisioned him as the long-term franchise quarterback when it drafted him in the same class that included Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert and Jalen Hurts, among others. After all, he was a Heisman Trophy finalist who led the Crimson Tide to the national title during his excellent collegiate career.

However, he didn't live up to the NFL expectations that came with such a college showing in the early portion of his career.

Tagovailoa completed 64.1 percent of his passes for 1,814 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions while appearing in 10 games as a rookie. He was an impressive 6-3 as a starter, but he wasn't the same type of aerial threat that fellow 2020 draftees Burrow and Herbert were right out of the gate.

He followed by completing 67.8 percent of his passes for 2,653 yards, 16 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in his second season. His total QBR was just 55.7, which placed him 18th in the league, per ESPN.

Yet he seemed to turn the corner in 2022 while throwing to a wide receiver group that included Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. He went 8-5 as a starter and helped lead the Dolphins to the playoffs with 25 touchdown passes to eight interceptions.

Unfortunately, his health was a major concern thanks to multiple concussions he suffered during the 2022 campaign.

Tagovailoa missed the playoffs as a result, and his health will surely remain a primary focus even after the team exercised the fifth-year option.

But the move also represents a clear indication of trust from the franchise in the signal-caller, and he will look to deliver on elevated expectations with a talented offense around him in 2023 and seemingly beyond.