Tua Tagovailoa, Jaylen Waddle Rip Dolphins' Performance in Joint Practice vs. Lions

The Miami Dolphins just endured a brutal joint practice with the Detroit Lions, to the point where quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and wide receiver Jaylen Waddle even called out the offensive unit's performance.

Multiple beat writers noted the one-sided nature of this practice.

The joint practice precedes the Lions' home preseason game against the Dolphins on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET.

Two seasons ago, the Dolphins were riding the high of a tremendous offense that finished second in scoring. Entering Week 18, the Dolphins needed a home win over the Buffalo Bills to clinch the AFC East and earn the conference's No. 2 seed.

However, Miami lost 21-14 and proceeded to lose 26-7 to the Kansas City Chiefs in the playoffs.

It's been tough sledding ever since. Miami slogged to an 8-9 season last year and notably went 2-4 when Tua Tagovailoa was out due to injury (concussion, hip).

The season ended with a brutal 32-20 loss to the New York Jets, who were 4-12 entering the game. Of note, superstar wideout Tyreek Hill in essence quit on the team during the third quarter and refused to play the remainder of the contest. After the game, Hill essentially hinted that he wanted out of Miami.

That tune later changed, but Tagovailoa told reporters in July that Hill needed to work to regain the team's trust.

Today's practice report isn't encouraging, and coupled with how things have transpired since the end of 2023, it may feel natural to be a bit pessimistic.

It's also training camp, and what happened won't count in the standings. Ultimately, Miami (and every other team) is 0-0 right now, so the team will have a fresh start on Sept. 7 when the team visits the Indianapolis Colts to begin the season.