Tua Tagovailoa was drafted out of Alabama in 2020 with the fifth pick by the Miami Dolphins. The start of his career was plagued by an inconsistent wide receiver room and numerous concussions. The Dolphins’ coach, longtime Patriots assistant Brian Flores, failed to display consistency as a head coach. Two years removed from Flores’ firing from the Dolphins, Tua opened up about his experience with the now Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator.
Tua Tagovailoa Vents About Former Coach Brain Flores
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Tua Tagovailoa was featured in an interview with “Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz,” in which he exposed the biggest differences between his first NFL head coach and his current head coach, Mike McDaniel.
“To put it in simplest terms, if you woke up every morning, and I told you that you suck at what you did, that you don’t belong doing what you do, that you shouldn’t be here, that this guy should be here, that you haven’t earned this right, and then you have somebody else come in and tell you: ‘Dude, you are the best fit for this. You are accurate, you are the best whatever, you are this, you are that’ – how would that make you feel, listening to one or the other? You see what I’m saying?” Tua Tagovailoa said.
“And then you hear it and hear it – regardless of what it is, the good or the bad – and you hear it more and more, you start to actually believe that. I don’t care who you are. You could be the President of the United States. [If] you have a terrible person that’s telling you things that you don’t want to hear or probably shouldn’t be hearing, you’re going to start to believe that about yourself.
Tua Tagovailoa exposed how he feels about Brian Flores as a head coach. Using the phrase “terrible person,” any player thinking about joining forces with Flores now has a warning to think about. Under Flores, the talented Tua threw for 4,467 in two seasons with just a 27:15 touchdown to interception record. Unable to stay healthy come playoff time in both of his first two years, Tua found his bearings in a post-Brian Flores era.
Tua’s Career After Flores
In his first year under Mike McDaniel, Tua Tagovailoa displayed his top-five pick potential. He passed for 3,548 yards, 25 touchdowns, and eight interceptions in 13 games. Tua missed four games due to concussions and still made his first Pro Bowl.
In the 2023-24 season, Tua Tagovailoa played in all 17 games for the first time. Tua also led the NFL with 4,264 yards and tacked on 29 touchdowns with 14 picks, completing 69.3% of his passes.
The Dolphins still seek their first playoff win under McDaniel (0-2). Nevertheless, Tagovailoa did display enough talent to ink a four-year contract worth $212.4 million with the Dolphins.
Brian Flores Responds To Tua’s Scolding Review
Following the Tua Tagovailoa tell-all, Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell looked to defend his defensive coordinator.
“… I can just tell you I know the players Flo works with, he’s got great relationships here… I know you guys [reporters] have heard a lot of them talk about how much they enjoy playing for him, and how much I enjoy working with him every day. And that’s all I can really comment on, and I’d just like to leave it at that.”
Brian Flores was soon asked about the situation, in which he took a tempered route.
“I’m genuinely, genuinely happy for the success that Tua has had,” Flores said, “and I really wish him nothing but the best.”
“I think part of coaching is correcting,” Flores said. “I’m always going to correct. I’m always going to have a high standard…I think there’s things that I could do better for sure… I’ve tried to apply the things that I could do better and the things that I’ve learned over the last two, three years.
Flores defended his relationships and coaching style but admitted that Tua’s words had a heavy effect on him.
“But I would say over the long haul, I’ve had a lot of great relationships over my 21-year career here in the league. Players, coaches, personnel, equipment, people in the kitchen. I mean really across the board, I’ve had a lot of great relationships.”
“Look, I’m human,” Flores said in response to being called a ‘terrible person’. “So that hit me in a way that wasn’t … positive for me. But at the same time, I’ve got to use that and say, ‘Hey, how can I grow from that? How can I be better?’… Do I feel like that’s me? No. But how can I grow from that situation and create a world where that’s not the case that anyone says that about Brian Flores?”
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