In February 2022, Mike McDaniel took over as the Miami Dolphins head coach after Brian Flores (2019-21) was fired, and this changed the trajectory of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa's career.
That is to say, apparently Flores, who accumulated a 24-25 record over the course of three seasons, was not very encouraging, as Tua expounded on his lack of confidence while playing under his former coach, during an interview with the "The Dan LeBatard Show."
“If you woke up every morning and I told you that you suck at what you did, that you don’t belong, that you shouldn’t be here, that you haven’t earned this…
and then someone come and tells you, ‘You are the best fit for this…How you that make you feel?”
- @Tua describes the… pic.twitter.com/bBHI6IsVlj
— Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (@LeBatardShow) August 19, 2024
"To put it in simplest terms, if you woke up every morning and I told you [that] you suck at what you did, that you don't belong doing what you do, that you shouldn't be here, that this guy should be here, that you haven't earned this right, and then you have somebody else come in and tell you, 'Dude, you are the best fit for this,'" Tua said on the LeBatard show. "How would it make you feel listening to one or the other, you see what I'm saying?"
"And then you hear it, no matter what it is, the good or the bad, you hear it more and more, you start to believe that. I don't care who you are. You could be the president of the United States, you have a terrible person telling you things that you don't want to hear or probably shouldn't be hearing, you're going to start believing that about yourself. And so that's what sort of ended up happening. It was, it's basically been what two years of training that out of not just me but a couple of guys as well that have been here my rookie year all the way until now."
Tua was drafted with the fifth overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, and over the course of his first two seasons, he threw for 4,467 yards, 27 touchdowns and 15 interceptions (sub-90 passer rating). Now fast forward, after McDaniel took over (2022-23), Tua accumulated 8,172 passing yards (led NFL in 2023; 4,624 yards), 54 touchdowns and 22 interceptions (100+ passer rating), while earning a Pro Bowl selection.
Tua pointed out that the support he received from both coaches was night and day. To emphasize, soon after being hired, McDaniel showed a 700-play highlight reel of what he believed the quarterback did well, and this belief in being able to achieve success with the third-year QB, at the time, was an important factor in the hiring process, per ESPN.
Back before the 2022 season, a few months after Flores was let go, Tua was asked by reporters about his relationship with his former coach, in which he replied, "That's a big question."
"Well, I'll tell you this. I'm very thankful that he drafted me to come here to play for the Miami Dolphins. That's what I'd say."
Now, a couple years later, everyone knows how Tua actually feels about his one-time coach, who once filed a lawsuit against the Dolphins, claiming that he was incentivized by owner Stephen Ross to lose games in 2019.
To note, since being fired, Flores joined the Pittsburgh Steelers as a linebackers coach, and last season the Minnesota Vikings hired him to be the team's defensive coordinator.
Related: Why Brian Flores' Lawsuit Could Spell Disaster For The NFL
