Dolphins' Skylar Thompson ready to lead as Tua Tagovailoa recovers from concussion
MIAMI - Skylar Thompson understands the pressure that falls on him as the starting quarterback of the Miami Dolphins for the foreseeable future.
He's their leader now and is expected to help the Dolphins stay on track as they try to deliver on high expectations despite plenty of adversity to start the season.
Thompson said his approach is simple: Don't get too far ahead of himself and take things day by day.
"When tomorrow comes I'll focus on tomorrow," Thompson said Wednesday. "That's my approach to everything. That's been my approach since I've gotten here, and that's led me to success."
Thompson will likely be Miami's starter until Tua Tagovailoa returns from a concussion. When exactly that will be is unknown, but Tagovailoa will remain out until at least Week 8.
The Dolphins placed Tagovailoa on injured reserve Tuesday as he works through his third diagnosed concussion in two years. He was injured against the Buffalo Bills last Thursday when he collided head first with defensive back Damar Hamlin on a scramble.
Coach Mike McDaniel has remained adamant he won't discuss timelines prematurely, saying he's more focused on Tagovailoa getting healthy than on when the quarterback can return to the field.
"The great thing about IR is that for a month's time, there's no timelines," McDaniel said Wednesday. "I always say that, but I'm not sure that people quite understand. If you set a timeline based upon the information that you have today, how much of whatever goes on is fulfilling the prophecy of that timeline? And is that the right thing? Especially with competitors, sometimes you can do more harm than good. Regardless, not worrying about anything as it relates to timelines is very empowering for him as a human being to recover from injury."
McDaniel said he'll know Friday if Tagovailoa can travel with the Dolphins on their trip to face Seattle on Sunday. He did not say what stage of the multi-step evaluation process Tagovailoa was in, but offered that the quarterback has been as involved with the team as the protocol rules allow him to be.
"We're all not trying to rush the process. As a matter of fact, we're trying to do the process right," McDaniel said. "That's what our focus is; I have zero concerns about him. He is in it with his teammates, and sometimes that means being on the field. Sometimes that means meetings. Sometimes that means in the training room. Sometimes that means in the locker room."
That has also included giving advice to Thompson, who has experience with being thrust into action.
Thompson started three games as a rookie in 2022, including a playoff loss to Buffalo in the wild-card round. Filling in for Tagovailoa, who was concussed twice that season, Thompson completed 78 of 150 passes for 754 yards with two touchdowns and five interceptions.
Thompson said he remembers every detail from his rookie year, from the defenses he faced to the crowd noise. One of the biggest things he learned was how to adjust.
"I felt like my rookie year I was doing things exactly by the book and viewing everything as I would see it in the playbook," Thompson said. "The footwork and everything. And it was all new to me. I studied it so much — I felt I knew it so well that sometimes it slowed me down a little bit even. That's just another progression of being in my third year and having this opportunity again. I feel like I have a very good understanding of what we're doing and why we're doing it."
Thompson did not play in 2023, serving as the team's emergency third quarterback in all 18 games behind Tagovailoa and Mike White, who is now with the Bills.
In his third season, Thompson said he has a good grasp of McDaniel's intricate system, which involves all kinds of shifts and motions. His teammates have also responded to his leadership, which is one of the things that McDaniel said won Thompson the No. 2 role in training camp.
The Dolphins signed Pro Bowl quarterback Tyler Huntley off the Ravens' practice squad on Monday for depth, but they have confidence in Thompson as their leader.
"I have no doubts in my mind that Skylar is going to go out there and do the best he can in Seattle," said defensive tackle Zach Sieler. "I'm super excited to see him play and work on this opportunity. Obviously, we're praying for and sad about Tua, but I have no hesitation with Skylar going out there as QB1 this week."