Tua Tagovailoa Crushed by NFL Fans in Loss to Stroud, Texans amid NFL Playoff Picture

The Miami Dolphins' playoff hopes are all but extinguished. They have Tua Tagovailoa, in large part, to thank for that bleak outlook.

The veteran quarterback had a rough outing on Sunday against the Houston Texans, throwing three interceptions while losing a fumble in a 20-12 loss.

Tagovailoa threw for 196 yards and a touchdown but was sacked three times and finished with four turnovers. He had a chance to lead a game-tying drive with just under two minutes remaining but threw his third interception of the day on the very first play.

And that had fans and pundits on social media taking their shots:

The loss dropped the Dolphins to 6-8 on the season, and more importantly, pushed them 2.5 games back of the Los Angeles Chargers (8-5) for the No. 6 seed and 2.5 games back of the Denver Broncos (8-5) for the No. 7 seed.

Both teams play later on Sunday and could push the advantage to three full games. Miami, in other words, will need to be perfect to finish the regular season and will also need either the Chargers or Broncos to have a full meltdown. They would also need the Indianapolis Colts (6-7) to struggle down the stretch.

It's a huge ask. Sunday's effort wasn't exactly a vote of confidence in the Dolphins even handling their end of the bargain.

The Dolphins only rushed for 52 yards and had 224 yards of total offense. The offense's inept play spoiled a strong showing from the defense, which only gave up 181 yards. But Miami's turnovers directly led to 10 points for Houston and also ended the game on the final drive.

They perhaps ended Miami's postseason aspirations, too. It was a performance that Tagovailoa will wish he could have back.