The Dolphins have to feel good about Tua Tagovailoa after win

The Miami Dolphins went into Foxborough and beat the New England Patriots with an encouraging performance from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.

Here’s a fun fact: Tua Tagovailoa has never lost to Bill Belichick, holding a 2-0 record against the Patriots in his career.

The Week 1 meeting between Tagovailoa’s Dolphins and New England should be a source of positivity for Miami.

In a 17-16 victory, Tagovailoa showed he can do what it takes to win a critical divisional game on the road.

Tua Tagovailoa is giving the Dolphins reason for optimism

“Like everybody, there’s some corrections that we have to make,” Brian Flores said about his QB after the game. “He made some good plays. Made some big throws…I thought he made a lot of good plays. Made big throws we needed.”

It wasn’t a perfect performance. As Mike Reiss of ESPN pointed out, Tua was 0-of-4 with an interception while under duress. That’s as much a question for the offensive line as it is the quarterback. Better protection will undoubtedly help the young quarterback. Better decision making when that’s not what’s in front of him can come with time.

Either way, he gritted out a tough win against a good defense on the road. He had a good connection with rookie receiver Jaylen Waddle and used his arm and legs to find the endzone.

Aside from the interception, which he made while trying to throw the ball away, he played well enough to lead his team to an opening victory.

Miami doesn’t need Tagovailoa to go carry the team. They need him to play under control. For most of Sunday, he did that.

It was a good start to build on.