Brian Flores Says Dolphins Could Delay Activation Of Tua Tagovailoa: 'I Want What Is Best For Him'
(CBSMiami)- Ever since the Miami Dolphins selected him with the No. 5 overall pick in April's draft, the question has been when, not if, Tua Tagovailoa will take over as the team's starting quarterback. Judging by head coach Brian Flores' comments on Tuesday, fans may have to wait to see the Alabama product take the field.
Speaking with reporters, Flores said that there is a possibility the team will delay activating the rookie quarterback to allow more time for him to recover from his hip injury.
"That is definitely part of the conversation, for sure," said Flores via Joe Schad of the Palm Beach Post. "We're at 10 months. It was a pretty serious injury. He looks good, though, you guys have seen him. He looks good. He looks healthy. He's moving around, to his right and to his left. But yes that is part of the conversation. Look, he's a great kid. I care about him. I want what's best for him. And that's definitely part of the conversation."
Tagovailoa suffered a dislocated and fractured hip on November 16, 2019. After having surgery, he has hit all of the post-operation milestones that doctors were looking for and has impressed so far in camp.
But, the Dolphins do also have veteran quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and young backup Josh Rosen in the quarterback room as well. Fitzpatrick, who started 13 games for the team last season, was expected to be the starter to begin the season anyway to allow time for Tagovailoa to heal and learn. But, Rosen has, according to Schad, shown improvement from last season and could make it easier for the team to justify holding Tagovailoa out if they want to give more time for him to heal.
"There's still a lot of competition at that position," said Flores. "So you know we're not saying somebody is one, two, three, it's still a competition. Obviously Fitz has played well. They've all played well in spurts. And they've all made mistakes. We just still have a few days here but we like where all three of them are and we'll continue to leave that as a competition moving forward."
The Dolphins first game is in Foxborough against the New England Patriots on September 13. For Flores, that's likely to be when the media learns of the teams plans at quarterback.
"As far as QB1, when would (the Dolphins) like to know?" said Flores. "As soon as possible. When will you guys know? Probably as late as possible."