Tua Tagovailoa’s future in Miami is getting murkier by the day. Newly minted general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan is acting more and more non-committal about Tagovailoa. Meanwhile new coach Jeff Hafley probably wants his own quarterback to kickstart his head coaching tenure – see Aaron Glenn and the disaster Justin Fields created for him. That leaves Miami with two options: either cut Tagovailoa and endure a historic dead cap hit or trade him.Â
Trading him isn’t as easy as it sounds with his massive contract, miserable play and depleted value. He was benched for Quinn Ewers before the 2025 season ended. If Miami decided to trade him, there would be several teams intrigued. Miami might have to take on more of Tagovailoa’s contract than they’d like, but these five moves could help them move on Tagovailoa before things get worse.Â
Two former top 5 picks get swapped in Dolphins-Cardinals mock trade
This is a move that is mutually beneficial for both the Arizona Cardinals and the Miami Dolphins. Swapping Kyler Murray and Tagovailoa gives both quarterbacks a fresh start while also getting new quarterbacks on new teams. This makes sense because both have hefty contracts that most teams aren’t going to want to take on. This allows both teams to do a one-to-one trade that gets both teams what they want.Â
Now the interesting thing here is for this to happen, both teams would have to accept that it’s not the upgrade they want, but at least saves them, respectively, from familiar frustrating quarterback play.Â
New York Jets get a re-do under center with NFL Draft plans in flux
The New York Jets have to figure out what to do with their quarterback situation. Aaron Glenn can’t afford to wait a year until the 2027 NFL Draft class Justin Fields isn’t the answer. Trading for Tagovailoa gives them a bridge option in the best way as they wait to see who the real future of the team is.
Tagovailoa landing in New York is a win-win. He gets on a team that needs him and will most likely be patient. They may not want to commit to him, but they’ll certainly have time as they work in whatever rookie they draft in 2027. This is the best chance for Glenn to avoid any more scrutiny. With Tagovailoa, the Jets should be able to win enough games to give him another season and then allow him to improve this team.Â
Indianapolis Colts spare themselves Anthony Richardson failed experiment
Is Tagovailoa the best replacement for Daniel Jones? Absolutely not. But if the Colts don’t re-sign Jones or lose him to another team in free agency, they’ll be left with Anthony Richardson and Riley Leonard. Neither are winning quarterbacks right now so they’ll be forced to find one. Tagovailoa could be a good enough bridge option as they figure out a long-term option. The biggest key to this trade is offloading Richardson as part of the deal. This rids the Colts of the struggling quarterback and brings on a new one.Â
As part of this deal, the Dolphins also get Richardson, a young quarterback who needs a fresh start. He has a lot of maturing in the NFL to do, but he still has upside. Miami could tap into that while either playing Ewers or signing a veteran like Kirk Cousins to give their young quarterbacks a year or so to prepare to take over.Â
Minnesota Vikings desperate attempt to move on from J.J. McCarthy
Believing in J.J. McCarthy backfired tremendously this past season. The Vikings just might be desperate enough to go after Tagovailoa if it helps them move on from McCarthy. Making McCarthy someone else's problem is better for Minnesota. Despite them ending the season with a five-game win streak, McCarthy can’t go in as the starter for the Vikings in 2026. Is Tagovailoa that much better? Maybe not, but he’s better than McCarthy.Â
New Orleans Saints get temporary bridge option with long term potential
The Saints have Tyler Shough, but is he really the best quarterback option for them? Maybe he’s not part of a deal for Tagovailoa, but it feels like Shough had a dream season that he won’t be able to replicate again anytime soon. That’s why New Orleans needs to look at a temporary upgrade in Tagovailoa. Like any of the other teams trading for Tagovailoa, this is a short term solution for quarterback-needy teams.Â
New Orleans’ offense isn’t horrible, but it’s not great. They can get a quarterback who is still serviceable while giving this offense a boost. Kellen Moore did well with Shough, which is why he could work with Tagovailoa too. Again, this isn’t a massive upgrade, but it could end up working out.