Welcome back, folks. Thanks for reading The Morning Win. Tua Tagovailoa is feeling the heat.
The Miami Dolphins dropped their fifth game of the season Sunday — a winnable two-point loss to the Los Angeles Chargers — intensifying the scrutiny of everyone involved, including Tagovailoa, who threw three interceptions in the loss. Instead of being a part of the solution, though, Tagovailoa might’ve made things worse after the game, calling out his teammates during his postgame presser.
“We have guys showing up to player-only meetings late. Guys not showing up to player-only meetings. There’s a lot that goes into that,” Tagovailoa said in response to a question about how he can help prevent the team from developing a “woe is me” mentality about their 1-5 start.
🎥 Tua Tagovailoa reveals players have been arriving late and not showing up to players only meetings: “We have guys showing up to player online meetings late, guys not showing up to player only meetings.” (@MiamiDolphins) #PhinsUppic.twitter.com/P05u2eb9cH
— FinsXtra (@FinsXtra) October 12, 2025
I don’t imagine that will go over well in the Dolphins locker room. It’s not the type of thing we usually hear from a starting quarterback. Particularly one who hasn’t accomplished much. When players and coaches start pointing fingers, it’s usually a sign of desperation. That’s what it looks like when someone is feeling the heat — and crumbling under the pressure of expectations.
Tagovailoa’s revelation was especially perplexing because it was unprompted, on an unrelated last question of his presser. It appears he offered up that information because he was out of answers. The irony in him starting his response with the importance of good leadership is that everything that followed was an example of the opposite. Valid as Tagovailoa’s concerns were, good leaders don’t throw their teammates under the bus in public. They hold people accountable in private. Particularly when said leader is a part of the problem on the field.
Ultimately, Miami’s leadership problem is bigger than Tagovailoa. It starts at the top. But it’s clear he isn’t currently part of the solution. What he did only threatens to further divide a team that appears to have enough problems as is.
Quick Hits: James Franklin fired … Chiefs fired up … and more
- Penn State decided $50 million wasn’t too high a cost to rid itself of James Franklin, firing its long-time coach on Sunday after a third-straight loss. In the interim, Terry Smith will coach the team, but here’s a list of 5 people fans want to see get the permanent job.
- Hear what Patrick Mahomes had to say about the post-game scuffle between the Chiefs and Lions on Sunday night. Brian Branch explained why he started the fight, calling his actions “childish.”
- Aaron Rodgers had his best game as the Steelers quarterback on Sunday. Christian D’Andrea dived into how much the stellar performance actually matters.
- On the other side of that performance was another loss for the 1-5 Browns and Myles Garrett, who’s reaping what he sowed when he re-upped with the team.
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This article originally appeared on For The Win: Tua Tagovailoa’s Dolphins leadership gripe was bad leadership
