Tua Tagovailoa – October 24, 2021 (Postgame)
Sunday, October 24, 2021
Postgame – Atlanta
QB Tua Tagovailoa
Q: For starters – the interception in the end zone. What did you see on that play?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: It was a Cover 2. Miscommunication with me and Durham (Smythe), and I take full responsibility for that one.
Q: How do you judge your day? You had four touchdown passes, some big plays both ways really, I mean.
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I think the margin for error is slim in this league. That’s kind of what ‘Flo’ (Brian Flores) has been telling us this entire week, and I think we had many opportunities to get good drives going. We just didn’t make use of those opportunities that the defense gave us.
Q: What was the week like for you? Obviously, there’s a lot swirling around out there.
TUA TAGOVAILOA: It was a normal week for me. I mean, I approached this game the same way I approach any other game.
Q: But the coaches have to sit down and talk to you about trade rumors. That doesn’t necessarily seem like a normal week even though it’s kind of been consistent all season.
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Yeah, I would say it still is a normal week. The only thing is, I really respect and appreciate his (Brian Flores) transparency, you know, with where he is at with that, but within our conversations I like to keep those private too.
Q: But you’re human. Isn’t it challenging, tough to block that out?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Not necessarily. Kind of how I answered Omar’s question. I respect what ‘Flo’ (Brian Flores) does, and he is transparent. He sits me down. He tells me what’s going on. He has conversations with (Chris) Grier, and he kind of keeps me in the loop with all of those things, but yeah, that’s – I hear it, but I’m not really focused on that.
Q: There also was a challenging moment in the game when you guys got the takeaway, and then you had the interception where you, yourself, and the team could have gotten down, and, yet, you didn’t. You brought them back and had the lead. How challenging was it to go through that period and how were you able to bring the team back?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I think it’s challenging for any team to be down by two touchdowns and having to rally the troops to go back out there and continue to fight their butts off and continue to play. You know, we had a lot of time in the fourth quarter. Obviously, you know, that second interception wasn’t what we wanted off of an interception that the defense gave us, but I think that’s just the testament to the kind of guys we have in the locker room. Grit, fight and finish.
Q: There were several key scrambles today. One late in the game where you broke the tackle and gained the first down. If you recall that run, what was going through your mind on that particular play?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I was just trying to get a first down on that. We had Albert Wilson also open on that play. I couldn’t see him, so I tried to maneuver my way throughout the pocket. I think the o-line did a really good job today. I was able to step up and make some plays with my feet and also make some plays on the run throwing the ball, too.
Q: You guys last season had a lot of magic mojo ability to finish games. This season that just has not been the case. How do you get back to that?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Well, I think, you know, what we got to do is continue to work. I don’t see any other way that you look at that. I don’t think there’s a secret recipe for wins. It’s just the margin for error is slim, you know, and my two turnovers, the amount of penalties that we’ve had in this game, you know, that just doesn’t do it. We just got to continue to work on those things and move on from that.
Q: How would you gauge your progression and your growth since coming to the NFL, and what do you feel like you still need to work on to improve and have success?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Being a second year player like I’ve said before, I wish I knew the things I knew when I was a rookie and my second year I know a lot more, but I’m continuing to learn. This is just an opportunity for us to come in tomorrow to work and learn from the mistakes that we made today.
Q: As the quarterback of the team how do you balance kind of making sure guys are keeping their head up but also letting them know, ‘hey, I feel your pain, I want to win, too’?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Yeah, I mean, everyone is here for a reason. They’re all professionals. They’re all really good at their position, but I would say we just got to continue to work. It’s tough right now, but we got to learn from a lot of the mistakes that we’ve made today.
Q: It looked like you and Dan Marino had some words before the game FOX showed. Was it encouragement words to you or support, or can you share any of what (he said)?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: It’s always support from Dan (Marino), and then there’s just other things that we’ve kind of talked about that I want to keep private.
Q: Are you upset over all this trade talk, or do you say, ‘I’m a pro, this stuff happens sometimes?’
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I hear it. I do hear it. The thing is I just don’t listen to it. You know? That’s the thing. But, yeah, that’s that.
