I recognize there is a strong contingent of Miami Dolphins fans who have either jumped off the Tua Tagovailoa bandwagon or were never on it to begin with. While I don’t see how the Dolphins move off of their $212.4 million man, I don’t want to alienate that group of fans.

Ultimately, we all want what is best for the team, even if we disagree on what that might be. So this article is for the haters, the ones who want the Dolphins to do whatever they can to move off of Tagovailoa this year. 

Over the weekend NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported that the Los Angeles Rams gave Matthews Stafford permission to seek a trade. According to Spotrac, the 37-year-old quarterback will have a cap hit of $49,666,667 in 2025 and $53,666,668 in 2026. The Rams have already indicated that they want to look towards the future when they informed Cooper Kupp that they would be releasing him this offseason, and the Stafford news seems to support that trend.

For his part, it seems that Stafford still has plenty left in the tank. This season, he went for 3,762 yards, 20 touchdowns, and eight interceptions while leading the Rams to the playoffs and giving the eventual Super Bowl Champions Philadelphia Eagles their only real test. 

Due to his age, it’s reasonable to assume that Stafford will be a one or two-year rental, and so his appeal is limited to teams that think they are contenders. Or teams that have to be contenders due to the pressure from ownership and the fans. In the past, I’ve written about how general manager Chris Grier and head coach Mike McDaniel are likely on the hot seat heading into 2025.

They will need to win a playoff game at the very least to remain in Miami, and fans are desperate to see a deep run. 

With all of this considered, one possible path for the duo to take would be to trade Tua Tagovailoa and a first-round pick for Stafford in order to maximize their championship potential over the next two years. Tagovailoa’s cap hit is $44,464,706 in 2025 and $31,200,000 in 202,6 less than what the Rams were set to owe Stafford. 

He also represents a potential future franchise quarterback, especially under Sean McVay, who was able to get the most out of Jared Goff earlier in his career. If the Rams truly want to look to the future, they could do worse than Tagovailoa. 

As for the Dolphins, pairing Stafford with Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle under McDaniel’s direction could result in an offensive explosion similar to what we saw in 2023. Stafford’s arm talent is much higher than Tagovailoa’s, even at his older age. This would allow the offense to be more unpredictable, as defenses would have to respect the deep passing game.

With teams playing back, the running game should pick back up, and planning a game plan for the Dolphins would likely be a nightmare for opposing defensive coordinators. 

I don’t believe this move is likely to happen, but the Dolphins did try to borrow the Rams’ blueprint for winning a Super Bowl by trading for and signing stars such as Tyreek Hill and Jalen Ramsey. So would it be so odd that they just completely copy their formula in order to compete for a Super Bowl over the next two years? Only Chris Grier and Mike McDaniel know for sure what their plan is, and as much of a Tua fan as I am, I have to admit this made-up scenario intrigues me.

If they could pair Stafford with a project quarterback, say Jalen Milroe, out of Alabama, it gets even more interesting. We’ll see what the Dolphins decide to do, but I expect at least one big move this offseason in an attempt to save some jobs.

For more sports opinions, you can follow me on YouTube @WickedGoodSports, and for opinions on reality TV, you can follow me on X @TheFakeBMarr

 

An Option for Reimagining the Offense or Low-Hanging Fruit for a High-Level Backup