Dave Hyde: Is there a crack in the Tua-McDaniel relationship?

Dave Hyde, South Florida Sun-Sentinel on Oct 22, 2025

Published in Football

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MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Somewhere through their dueling analysis and misguided words is the hope Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa keep their relationship intact. It won’t be easy while walking the plank the rest of this season.

But their bond has been one of the few good aspects of the past few, disappointing seasons. Neither is having a good year, the coach or the quarterback. But they said Wednesday everything is fine between them, too.

They met twice this week for an hour and then 90 minutes to sort out this offense’s problems. No feelings were hurt to the point of a public airing, either. Or they’ve learned not to air them publicly.

McDaniel and Tagovailoa have done their share of stumbling in front of the cameras to make people question where their relationship stands. Has there been a crack in their relationship? A question about each other’s role in this season?

Part of the fate of a rotting season is the behind-the-scenes machinations becoming more interesting than the football at some point. And we’re at that point. A 1-6 record after a blowout loss to a one-win Cleveland team says so.

Their words have become an issue, because they’ve constantly made them issues. It started with Tua citing some obvious problems in the offensive operation against New England, and the coach and quarterback having different view of an interception against Buffalo.

But Tua got everyone’s attention by revealing players were late or altogether missed a players-only meetings in the minutes after losing to the Los Angeles Chargers. That raised more questions than he answered. Who was late? What did it say about his leadership? Or even McDaniel’s culture?

McDaniel said the next day that Tua’s comments were “misguided,” and “not the right forum.” That sounded right. But think about it. McDaniel publicly criticized Tua for publicly criticizing his teammates. A better answer: “I talked with Tua about his comments, but we’ll keep these things inside the family.”

Instead, their words kept bouncing around the national talk shows all last week to lead into this week’s issue. That came when McDaniel was asked if Tua was the starting quarterback after being benched at the end of Sunday’s game.

“Yeah, he’s going to take the snaps this week and he’s going to be our starter this week, and my expectation is that we don’t throw 10 picks,’’ he said.

That summed up McDaniel’s penchant of not talking like a football coach. But given the season and recent issues with Tua, the ESPN morning shows used it to sum up the whole flailing season and a general level of disdain for McDaniel.

“If I had to see that man in front of me with some of the things I’ve seen him say … I don’t know how I’d be able to play in the locker room,’’ said ESPN’s Tedy Bruschi, the former New England linebacker.

Tagovailoa evidently didn’t think anything more about the “10 picks” comment than: “It’s true, you don’t want anyone that’s going in there to hinder the team from being able to win the game.”

McDaniel improved his answer given a second chance Wednesday.

“I think there’s zero uncertainty with Tua on conviction in him and my belief in him,’’ he said

They have to know they’re in this together. Wherever it goes. However it ends. It’s been that way since McDaniel pounded the table, as Tua said, for the quarterback to get his big contract.

That was McDaniel doubling down they could win big together. He only hoped that on the plane to Miami after taking the job when he made sure everyone saw his you’re-my-man phone call with Tua.

His job then was to build Tua’s game back up and see who he is. He did that. Seventy points against Denver. Leading the league in offense. Remember those days?

Now, the curtain is coming down on them. The coach-quarterback drama often has offered a prism into the Dolphins larger problems of the last couple of decades. Former Miami quarterback Daunte Culpepper cursed then-coach Nick Saban upon being benched.

Joe Philbin served up his infamous “queasy” comment when he didn’t trust Ryan Tannehill to throw the ball on third-and-long (instead, he punted it back to Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers, who won the game).

Before McDaniel, Brian Flores coached Tagovailoa so hard through their two seasons that their relationship had fractured long before the coach berated the quarterback at halftime of their Week 17 game in Tennessee.

McDaniel has operated the larger team like a cooperative — “teammates,’’ he once called his players. Tua has been more of a favorite son and business partner. Let’s hope this season doesn’t destroy that. But their bond is being tested by losses, by words and by their central role in the other’s disappointment.