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Former Miami Dolphins offensive tackle Terron Armstead had more praise for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa on Monday.
Armstead, a vocal Tagovailoa supporter, once again compared him to legendary quarterback Drew Brees and said that he will improve in key areas this season.
“I think he’s special,” Armstead said of Tagovailoa. “I do. I really do. I’ve been very loudly about my support of Tua as a teammate, as a fan. I think he can do really special things with the football in his hand.
“I may be the one that originated the Drew Brees comparison, and I’ll stand on that. I will. He’s very talented – his anticipation, his accuracy, his precision – it’s very few guys that’s walked this planet that can do what he can do with the football in his hand.”
Armstead continued in his praise of Tagovailoa.
“I’ve seen it,” he said. “I’ve seen it. In close proximity, I’ve seen his preparation. We’ve seen him – collectively as football fans – we’ve seen him improve since his rookie year to now. He led the league in passing yards a couple years ago. He leads the league in completion percentage every year. Those are winning stats.
“And I think even more this year, he takes another step in his leadership. He takes another step in the fourth quarter, two-minute drills, those late game situations that really separate the good from the great. I think it’s time.”
Armstead spent the 2022, 2023 and 2024 seasons with the Dolphins, and he had a major role protecting Tagovailoa. Even though the Dolphins did not win a playoff game during Armstead’s tenure with the franchise, it’s clear that he still believes in Tagovailoa to do great things in Miami.
If anything has held Tagovailoa back from reaching his full potential at the NFL level, it’s been injuries. The Dolphins quarterback has only played in every game in a season once in his NFL career (the 2023 campaign), and he led the Dolphins to an impressive 11-6 mark that season.
Last season, Tagovailoa was limited to just 11 games, and Miami failed to make the playoffs. The Dolphins were just 2-4 in the six games that he missed, and they finished under .500 in the regular season for the first time since Mike McDaniel became the franchise’s head coach.
Despite missing time, Tagovailoa has been extremely effective when he’s been able to suit up.
The University of Alabama product led the NFL in passing yards in the 2023 season, and he led the league in yards gained per pass attempt, touchdown percentage and passer rating in the 2022 season.
Last season, he threw for 260.6 yards per game and completed 72.9 percent of his passes. He led the league in completion percentage, and the Dolphins were above .500 in his starts.
But if Tagovailoa truly wants to be considered one of the best quarterbacks in the league, he’s going to need to stay healthy and take his game to another level against quality opponents, especially in the postseason.
The Dolphins lost Tagovailoa’s lone playoff start in the 2023 season against the Kansas City Chiefs. He threw one touchdown and one interception in that game while completing just 20 of his 39 pass attempts.
Since Armstead, even though he’s no longer a member of the Dolphins, continues to praise Tagovailoa, Dolphins fans should be optimistic about the quarterback’s outlook in the 2025 season.
