Tua Tagovailoa – August 29, 2020
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Saturday, August 29, 2020
QB Tua Tagovailoa
(An emotional day for you and your offense and QB Ryan Fitzpatrick got the word about his mom. What did you say to him and how did you go from learning that to starting a game 10-15 minutes later?) – “Yeah, I’d say that was something that was pretty difficult. I kind of told ‘Fitz’ that I’m here for him; but it was something more so emotional for me, too, because I kind of thought of my own mom, and just the thought of not having a family member, losing a family member, I mean, it’s hard. So being given that circumstance, being told that I had be ready to go out with the first group today, it wasn’t something that I was nervous to do; but it was more so, I kind of – I kind of felt what – I would say kind of what ‘Fitz’ was going through. I got emotional when ‘Fitz’ ended up leaving, too and while we were about to pray as a team; but that’s not something that’s easy. I reached out to him, too, telling him that he’s in my prayers and he’s been on my mind and my heart and that if they need anything, that they can reach out to me and I’m here.”
(Like you mentioned, you had to go out on the field after that, and this was your first game-like action since the injury. How did it feel for you to get back into the flow of things in that respect?) – “Yeah, I think there was some good today. There was also some not so good. But I think it was a learning curve for me and a lot of the rookies. There’s some things that we need to clean up offensively on my end, and things in general with communication; and then for me, not turning the ball over in situations. So being better with situational awareness, down and distance, and then communication, and that’s why we got film, too, to be able to go over that. So after this interview, I’ll probably go and look at the film and get ready for our meeting tonight with what our coaches have to say.”
(The last time we talked to you, you talked about your relationship with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick and how he had face timed you and shown you his family and about the month-plus that you’ve gotten to know him as a teammate. What does he embody as a teammate, and just the impact of what he brings to the team?) – “’Fitz’ is just a wholesome person. The way he is out on the field is the same way he is off the field. I don’t think there’s really a distinct change in who he is. I mean, what you see out there is really who ‘Fitz’ is. He’s a coach. He’s a mentor on and off the field. But he’s also a very, very family-oriented person. Very loving. Very caring for guys. And he’s funny, too. He’s really funny.”
(What is it like – going back to draft day, you’re drafted with the organization that has a black head coach and a black GM and you being a person of color, what does it mean to you to have that sort of diversity at those three positions in your organization?) – “Yeah, I think that’s something very unique, first off, because you don’t get that too often around the NFL. So I think it speaks volumes to the organization, the Dolphins organization, from the top down – from the president to the GM, CEO, whatever you want to say. It speaks volumes that whoever can get the job done for us, that’s who we are going to go with. We are very blessed to have ‘Flo’ (Head Coach Brian Flores) as our head coach and we trust that the decisions that he is going to make for our team are in our best interests.
(I noticed during the final drive of the game, you got the team to the 49-yard line. There was a timeout and then the offense got pulled there. Were you hoping to finish the game there and were you hoping to make a comeback down 10-6? What’s your overall thoughts on how you played today?) – “I would say first off, my overall thoughts on my play wasn’t to where I want it to be. I don’t think anyone today is where they want to be; but to me, it’s really not taking it a series at a time. It’s more so a play; what can I do to put our offense in the best position on this play. And like I said, there were some good, there was some bad, and it’s just an opportunity to continue to learn, continue to grow. Communication with the guys is going to be key coming to the sideline and then in practices that we are going to have. I was hoping to be able to finish that drive. I don’t know what happened; but hey, that’s how the game goes. You do all you can until something happens, and like I said, you can only do as much as you can.”
(I saw the documentary that you guys put together. It was really well done. One of the things that was commented on in the move that I thought was interesting was when you talked about how your grandfather said to be a lion and not a gazelle, you have a choice to be a lion or a gazelle. I wonder how that story applied to training camp for you.) – “Yeah, I think that saying really relates to life in general for me. You’ve got the lion and the gazelle. They both wake up in the morning and they’ve both got to run. One is running to something and one is running away from something, and which one are you? For me, you take on the mindset of trying to wake up and become a lion every day. You always want to go and chase your goals for the day, get better, do something good for the community, and I really think it’s just something that I can take in life in general and not just training camp. I’m chasing to be the best Tua that I can be both on and off the field, and really that’s it.”
