Year in and year out, the Miami Dolphins ignored the red flags and doubled down on their commitment to quarterback Tua Tagovalioa.
Ultimately, that confidence in the Alabama product came back to haunt them.
Tagovailoa is signed through the 2028 season, and he’s still owed $121.4 million in salary alone, according to Spotrac.
As such, even if there might be a market for him, albeit limited, the Dolphins will have to include some steep compensation to get his contract off the books.
According to CBS Sports insider Jonathan Jones, one unnamed NFL team may be willing to acquire his huge contract, provided the Dolphins also give them a first-round selection.
Dolphins would have to give up a first-round pick to trade Tua Tagovalioa
“One high-ranking team executive told CBS Sports he had considered taking on Tagovailoa if the Dolphins would send a first-round pick to take on the freight of his contract,” Jones reported. “It is the type of deal the NFL frowns upon and something that has only been done at that level with Brock Osweiler.”
Back in 2017, the Houston Texans traded Brock Osweiler and a second-round pick to the Cleveland Browns, saving $10M in salary-cap space and $16M in cash just one year after getting a four-year, $72M deal.
If the Dolphins are unwilling to give up a first-round pick, Jones reports they might have no choice but to release their quarterback and spread the massive cap hit over several years:
“The odds have been overwhelmingly in favor of the Dolphins exercising Tagovailoa’s 2026 option at some point 10 days after the start of the league year and then releasing him as a post-June 1 designation,” added Jones. “That will spread the $99M dead cap hit over two seasons and make Tagovailoa free to sign somewhere on the veteran minimum.”
That would set a record for the largest dead-cap hit in NFL history, ahead of the $85M the Denver Broncos took to part ways with Russell Wilson.
Last season, Tagovailoa completed 67.7 percent of his passes for 2,660 yards, 20 touchdowns and 15 picks, per Pro Football Reference. Notably, questions about his physical traits and concussions will take a serious toll on his market, even as a free agent.
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