Miami’s $99M problem: Can the Dolphins really move on from Tua?

The Miami Dolphins and Tua Tagovailoa saga continues. Speaking at the NFL Combine this week, general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan confirmed that “everything’s on the table” regarding former No. 5 overall pick, including a trade. It was yet another sign that Miami’s quarterback situation is no longer stable.

Although the Dolphins have appeared to be ready to move on from Tagovailoa for some time now, it’s not just a football decision. It’s a financial hazard.

Miami’s $99.2 million reality

If the Dolphins release Tagovailoa before June 1, they would absorb a staggering $99.2 million dead cap hit, the largest in NFL history. Even a post-June 1 designation would split the damage across two seasons, including a $67.4 million hit in 2026. Sullivan acknowledged as much.

“It could go in a lot of different ways,” he said. “A trade is a possibility… it’s kind of all on the table when it comes to Tua at this moment.”

The Dolphins finished the 2025 season 7–10, their second straight losing season, and fired head coach Mike McDaniel. Now they’re staring at a quarterback decision that could define the next half-decade, and they don’t appear to have a clear alternative.

Rookie Quinn Ewers started the final three games of 2025 after Tagovailoa was benched. He went 1–2, flashing potential but hardly cementing himself as the future.

Free agency doesn’t offer much certainty either. Malik Willis is expected to be the most coveted quarterback on the market, but reports suggest Miami won’t engage in a bidding war. Geno Smith has been floated as a fallback option, though that possibility has already drawn skepticism, not to mention outright anger, from fans online. Replacing Tagovailoa with another interception-prone veteran hardly screams “reset”.

Tagovailoa’s 2025 numbers weren’t catastrophic. He finished the season with 20 touchdowns and 15 interceptions in 14 starts, but they marked a clear regression. The Dolphins collapsed down the stretch, and the decision to bench him for a rookie in December said a lot about the direction in which the Dolphins are moving.

After the season, Tagovailoa even admitted that a change of scenery would be “dope.” Obviously, that was not a formal trade request, but it definitely didn’t show an undying loyalty to the ‘Fins.

Here is what makes the situation so risky for Miami. These are their options:

• Absorb a record-setting cap hit and reset the roster.
• Try to trade Tagovailoa and recoup value.
• Keep him and bet on a bounce-back season.
• Pivot to a bridge quarterback while rebuilding.

None of those options is ideal. And that uncertainty is already hitting fans hard after they watched their playoff team from 2022 and 2023 unravel in just two seasons. The Dolphins now must decide whether to double down on a past investment or admit it didn’t work.

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