Dolphins might want Justin Herbert over Tua Tagovailoa

The Miami Dolphins and Tua Tagovailoa has seemed like an arranged marriage, but there’s a plot twist where they may prefer Justin Herbert.

As they entered Brian Flores’ first season as head coach, the 2019 plan for the Miami Dolphins bore the convenient name “Tank for Tua” (Tagovailoa). That didn’t quite come to fruition as foreseen, with a 5-11 record to give them the No. 5 pick in this year’s draft, and Matt Miller of Bleacher Report has reported the Dolphins could instead target Justin Herbert.

This isn’t the first indication that a Miami-Tua marriage may not happen as has been pre-ordained for over a year. Back in February, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reported the Dolphins had an “increasingly positive” view of Herbert. They also were, and presumably still are despite very positive recent reports, concerned about Tagovailoa’s recovery from a fractured and dislocated hip as well as his long-term durability after multiple injuries in college.

With three first-round picks, No. 5, No. 18 and No. 26 overall,  the Dolphins are in an enviable position. The could use that pick capital to move up from No. 5, to get Tagovailoa (or Herbert?), or stay put and add a serious influx of top-end young talent to a core that has been significantly bolstered in free agency. There’s a chance Herbert falls a bit too, putting them in position to get their guy with that second first-rounder or use the latter two first-rounders to move up for him.

This is a unique NFL offseason and pre-draft process, with the inability to get a broad evaluation of prospects due to the coronavirus pandemic. But this is still the time for rampant misdirection, and even outright lies being offered to reporters. The Dolphins may indeed prefer Herbert over Tagovailoa when it comes down to it, and there’s a case to be made for that. But no one can really know right now, and the fact Herbert over Tua buzz is out there again is reason for some skepticism.