Tua Tagovailoa eagerly talks up ‘cool' Mike McDaniel, but Brian Flores? Not so much | Habib

MIAMI GARDENS — Tua Tagovailoa spoke with Dolphins beat reporters for the first time since the season ended Wednesday.

When the conversation turned to Mike McDaniel, Tagovailoa talked about reviewing film with his new coach. He talked about the leadership McDaniel expects. He talked about how McDaniel wants to “hang out” with players, as evidenced by that viral video of McDaniel belting out a warrior call at Tagovailoa’s charity luau.

But when talk turned to Brian Flores?

Tagovailoa suddenly didn’t have much to say.

“The big question,” Tagovailoa said, taking a deep breath for what would be his first public comments on Flores’ firing.

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Maybe you leaned forward, waiting for Tagovailoa to be upfront about a relationship that — let’s just say it never involved invites to a luau and laughs over a Mai Tai.

“Well, I’ll tell you this,” Tagovailoa said. “I’m very thankful that he drafted me to come here to play for the Miami Dolphins. That’s what I’d say.”

What about the Dolphins moving on from Flores despite winning nine games last season? Was that a surprise? A shock? A relief?

“I would say I have no comment towards any of that,” Tagovailoa said. “Just because I don’t come up with those decisions.”

Tagovailoa wasn’t the one who fired Flores, but he wasn’t the one who hired McDaniel either, yet he had plenty to say about that. Tagovailoa was content to let everyone read between the lines, no Sherlockian skills necessary.

Tua Tagovailoa, Mike McDaniel appear to hit it off

What matters from here on involves whatever measure of success McDaniel and Tagovailoa can create together. Last month, McDaniel talked about the "trust and mutual respect" the two already shared. It’s clear that Tagovailoa’s comfort level with this arrangement couldn’t be higher.

“I don’t know if you’ve seen the videos of him at the luau,” Tagovailoa said of McDaniel. “I think that speaks a lot. That’s kind of how the relationship has been. Very supportive. Wants to hang out. I go up there to his office, I’ve got a couple of the guys coming over to hang out and he feels bad that he didn’t get an invite to come over and hang out.”

Wait. Hang out with the head coach? That doesn’t happen in the NFL, does it?

“Ah,” Tagovailoa said. “This one, you can. This one, you can. Yeah. He’s that cool.”

Know what else is cool? The Dolphins surrounding Tagovailoa with more talent than he ever had in his first two NFL seasons. You know who they are, starting with a receiver whose name sounds a lot like “Tyreek Hill.” Add a couple of running backs and a couple of offensive linemen via free agency and there’s a school of thought that says the Dolphins’ fortunes revolve around Tagovailoa’s ability to act as the glue.

“I think pressure’s going to be there every time,” Tagovailoa said. “I don’t feel more pressure that we’ve acquired all these guys, but it’s more of an opportunity that I get — that we all get as a team — to show what we can do this year.”

Everybody wants to know how Tagovailoa and Hill are progressing. Wednesday was just the second day of veterans minicamp. Voluntary practice. In April. How much is there to be discerned, really?

Tagovailoa knows this much: “He can turn a negative 2-yard swing route into a 20-yard touchdown or a 20-yard gain, so it’s pretty cool. It’s exciting.”

Not only has Hill made a Pro Bowl career out of creating lightning out of little, but 2021 Dolphins MVP Jaylen Waddle has expressed an urge to see his per-catch average balloon in 2022. It’ll be a mantra you hear often.

“Really, the biggest thing for us is YAC,” Tagovailoa said, NFL-speak for yards after catch. “So we want to YAC the heck out of teams.”

Mom, go pretend you're Tyreek Hill, OK?

If it’s April, Tagovailoa is having to learn a new system. He figures this is the sixth new offensive coordinator he has had in recent years. He even has perfected a method to learn a new system. First, he studies. Then, relatives quiz him.

“And then from there I’ll go outside,” Tagovailoa said. “You know, in the back yard. And then I’ll move my dad or my brother, or whoever’s out there, my mom sometimes, and I’ll move them, telling them, ‘Hey, you’re the Z now … ’ ”

That Mom and Pop approach, Tagovailoa figures, can only help when things rev up for training camp and players have questions about their responsibilities. Much was made of Tagovailoa not being a team captain last year. Whether he is or isn’t in 2022, he’ll still have to take charge in the huddle.

“The cool thing about being on this team under Mike is Mike doesn’t force you to be what you’re not, or what you don’t want to be,” Tagovailoa said. “If this is how you lead, that’s all he wants you to do.

“ … For me, my leadership role on this team hasn’t changed. Just be myself. What more can you ask?”

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Tua Tagovailoa thinks Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel is 'cool'