Entering sixth season, Dolphins' Tagovailoa focusing on avoiding injuries
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa speaks to the press after a practice at NFL football minicamp, Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa speaks to the press after a practice at NFL football minicamp, Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa speaks to the press after a practice at NFL football minicamp, Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa speaks to the press after a practice at NFL football minicamp, Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa speaks to the press after a practice at NFL football minicamp, Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa speaks to the press after a practice at NFL football minicamp, Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Entering his sixth season, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is still trying to show he can stay healthy on a consistent basis.
Tagovailoa missed six games last season because of two separate injuries and Miami finished 8-9, missing the postseason after playoff appearances the previous two years.
Advertisement
Tagovailoa talked about his injury history as he addressed reporters following the Dolphins' first day of minicamp at the club's practice facility Tuesday.
'Doing everything I can to stay available for the guys,' Tagovailoa said. 'Like I said before in the past, nothing changes with that.'
However for Tagovailoa and the Dolphins, staying healthy has proved challenging since the club drafted him as the fifth overall selection in 2020. With the exception of his standout season in 2023, Tagovailoa has dealt with multiple injuries, including concussions.
The most recent concussion — in a Week 2 home loss against the Buffalo Bills — sidelined him for four games last season. Tagovailoa scrambled for yardage then collided head-first with Bills safety Damar Hamlin.
Advertisement
'I would say the longevity for me to be on the field with my guys is more important than whatever that one play is,' Tagovailoa said. 'You have more quarters than there would be with just that one play.
'I show the guys that I'm competitive and I know they know that. It's just a nature thing. It comes natural to me to compete in that sense. And that's the thing I fight with.'
The Dolphins were 1-3 during Tagovailoa's absence with backups Skylar Thompson and Tyler Huntley. A hip injury also forced Tagovailoa to sit the final two games of the season.
With Tagovailoa's long-term health remaining an issue, the Dolphins signed Zach Wilson to a one-year deal in the offseason. Wilson, the No. 2 overall selection in the 2021 draft, is attempting to jump-start his career after three unsuccessful seasons with the New York Jets and one year while backing up Bo Nix in Denver.
Advertisement
The quarterback depth chart also includes rookie Quinn Ewers, whom the Dolphins drafted in the seventh round following a standout college career.
'I think it's really working out for Zach,' Tagovailoa said. 'For certain practices, you guys aren't allowed to see the development he's made and the strides that he's made as a player. I would say the same for Quinn as well.'
The Dolphins have plenty invested in Tagovailoa, who was injury-free in 2023 when he threw 29 touchdowns and for a league-high 4,624 yards. The Dolphins gave him a four-year, $212 million contract extension.
Three-time All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey and tight end Jonnu Smith didn't participate Tuesday. Ramsey reportedly has requested a trade, while Smith, who caught a team-high 88 passes last season, is seeking to restructure his contract.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
NBA reveals 2025 Mexico City matchup
The post NBA reveals 2025 Mexico City matchup appeared first on ClutchPoints. Mexico will get to see NBA stars play in a regular-season game in the 2025-26 season. The league announced on Tuesday that the Dallas Mavericks and the Detroit Pistons will be the teams sharing the court in a game in Mexico City in November. Advertisement 'The National Basketball Association (NBA) and Zignia Live today announced that The NBA Mexico City Game 2025 will feature the Dallas Mavericks and the Detroit Pistons playing a regular-season game hosted by Zignia Live at the Arena CDMX in Mexico City on Saturday, Nov. 1.,' the leagues' statement read (via the NBA's official website). Mexico has been a frequent host for NBA games, and this upcoming matchup between the Mavericks and the Pistons is not the first time that the two teams will face off in a location south of the border. Back in 2019, Dallas defeated the Pistons at the Arena Ciudad de Mexico via a 122-111 score. Then-Mavs franchise face Luka Doncic put on a show in that contest, as the Slovenian star guard erupted for a total of 41 points on a 14-for-24 shooting from the field while also knocking down six 3-pointers. He added 12 rebounds and 11 assists for a triple-double in just 34 minutes of action. The Pistons, on the other hand, were led by Andre Drummond, who shined with a double-double stat line of 23 points and 14 boards to go with three steals and an assist in 34 minutes of floor duty. This time around, however, the Mavericks will not have Doncic to lead them after trading him to the Los Angeles Lakers last February. But Dallas still has the likes of Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson. There is also the potential that the Mavericks will have Cooper Flagg on the roster by then, with Dallas holding the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA draft. Advertisement The Pistons, on the other hand, are now spearheaded by the talented Cade Cunningham, who's surrounded by a young but evolving supporting cast, including the likes of Jalen Duren, Jaden Ivey and Ausar Thompson. The Dallas-Detroit 2025 game in Mexico will be the 34th NBA game there since 1992 and the first since the Miami Heat defeated the Washington Wizards in November of 2024, 118-98. Related: Mavericks' Kyrie Irving passionately defends Karl-Anthony Towns from trolls Related: NBA rumors: Have Knicks requested Jason Kidd interview from Mavericks?
New York Post
10 minutes ago
- New York Post
Pete Alonso unsung hero offensively and defensively in Mets' win over Nationals
Access the Mets beat like never before Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Mike Puma about the inside buzz on the Mets. Try it free In a contest that featured a complete-game shutout from David Peterson, two home runs from Brandon Nimmo and a fifth home run in his past 11 games from Juan Soto, Pete Alonso might have been the quietest major contributor. The Mets slugger just keeps hitting — and continues playing a better-than-the-numbers defensive first base — as a hot start has become a hot two-plus months of the season. Advertisement Alonso drilled an RBI double in the first inning to give the Mets the only run they would need and did his best in helping Peterson take down nine scoreless innings for the first time in his career in Wednesday's 5-0 victory over the Nationals at Citi Field. By jumping on a two-out curveball from Jake Irvin and one-hopping the center field wall to drive in Nimmo, Alonso extended his on-base streak to 19 games and hitting streak to eight games. Over those eight games, he has gone 14-for-44 with eight extra-base hits, nine runs scored, 17 RBIs and a 1.470 OPS. Advertisement CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND METS STATS Overlooked defensively, Alonso made several clutch stops to help Peterson through a game in which any extra pitch would have been costly. In the second inning, Alonso made a nice scoop on a ball that third baseman Ronny Mauricio threw in the dirt. With two runners on in the seventh, Alonso knocked down a ground ball from Alex Call, picked it up and won the foot race to the bag. 'The defense making some big plays, Pete knocking that ball down,' Peterson said. 'I get the attention for it, but this was a huge team win.' Advertisement Pete Alonso celebrates after ripping an RBI double in the first inning of the Mets' 5-0 win over the Nationals on June 11, 2025. Corey Sipkin for New York Post Jeff McNeil (1-for-4) extended his on-base streak to 14 games. Advertisement The Mets are open-minded — and perhaps unsure — about what they have in Paul Blackburn. The righty started one game after coming off the injured list, throwing five scoreless innings at Dodger Stadium on June 2, and then was bumped from a starting group that had been excellent while he was rehabbing his knee injury. Paul Blackburn has been primarily pitching in the bullpen for the Mets. Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images Blackburn was shuffled to the bullpen and able to remain stretched out by eating up four innings on 71 pitches Sunday, when he earned the rare blowout save by mopping up a game that had been decided early. Asked if Blackburn would remain in that piggyback role, Carlos Mendoza said, 'not necessarily.' 'It happened that day [in Colorado] — we were staying away from a lot of guys [in the bullpen] that day,' Mendoza said. 'But if we need to use him for an inning or two in high leverage, we would do it. 'We feel good with him fully built up, and we can get 75 to 80 pitches there. But if we need to shoot him there for a couple of innings, we will, too.' Advertisement Blackburn made just his fifth career relief appearance, while he has started 83 games. He has taken the reduced role willingly. The Mets traded for the 31-year-old at last year's trade deadline, but his time with the club has been marked by a series of injuries. Advertisement Mark Vientos again took swings in the batting cage and jogged in the outfield. The third baseman, who has been out since June 2 with a right hamstring strain, does not look far from a rehab assignment. Several around the Mets, including some coaches, wore shirts that read, 'Vote Mets' as an All-Star push.
Yahoo
10 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Yankees Facing Difficult Ben Rice Decision After Giancarlo Stanton Update
Yankees Facing Difficult Ben Rice Decision After Giancarlo Stanton Update originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The longer that All-Star designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton remained on the injured list, the longer that young slugger Ben Rice got to stay in the New York Yankees' lineup. Rice's run as the Yankees' starting DH is nearing its final weeks, however. Stanton is finally nearing a return to the majors after a prolonged battle with tennis elbow in both arms; the five-time All-Star begins a rehab assignment Tuesday at Double-A Somerset. While Rice has been an impressive breakout star in his first full season, not even a propensity for mammoth home runs stands to keep him in the lineup. Rice enters Tuesday hitting .241 with 12 homers, 25 RBI, and a .825 OPS through 218 plate appearances. Rice ranks 34th among all qualified hitters in OPS, and his .497 slugging percentage is 24th in the league. Most teams would kill for production like that, but most teams aren't the Yankees. Stanton's contract all but guarantees him a spot as the Yankees' DH, and Paul Goldschmidt is enjoying an All-Star-caliber season at first base. That doesn't leave many at-bats for Rice, especially because the Yankees remain committed to Austin Wells at catcher. SNY's Andy Martino recently dismissed the idea the Yankees should demote Rice to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre so he can get regular at-bats. Martino instead proposed the Yankees work to play Stanton, Rice, and Goldschmidt at least two out of every three games. Martino also reported that the Yankees do not intend to play Rice anywhere but at catcher, first base, or designated hitter. "Rice is closer to gracing the cover of 'MLB: The Show' than he is to earning a trip to Scranton," Martino wrote. Either way, the Yankees find themselves in a difficult situation, one where there are too many hitters with too few at-bats to go around. It's better than the alternative, as teams like the Colorado Rockies and Miami Marlins know all too well. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 10, 2025, where it first appeared. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
