Tua Tagovailoa candid after Dolphins drop to 1-5, says some teammates aren't taking players-only meetings seriously

https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/breaking-news/article/tua-tagovailoa-candid-after-dolphins-drop-to-1-5-says-some-teammates-arent-taking-players-only-meetings-seriously-214235215.html

The Miami Dolphins have lost five of their first six games this season. Their only win came against a winless New York Jets team.

After falling 29-27 to the Los Angeles Chargers Sunday, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was candid about the Dolphins’ 1-5 start.

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“I think it starts with the leadership in helping articulate that for the guys and then what we’re expecting out of the guys,” Tagovailoa said. “We’re expecting this. Are we getting that? Are we not getting that?

“We have guys showing up to player-only meetings late, guys not showing up to player-only meetings. There’s a lot that goes into that. Do we have to make this mandatory? Do we not have to make this mandatory? So it’s a lot of things of that nature that we got to get cleaned up. And it starts with the little things like that.”

This isn’t the first time Tagovailoa has called out teammates at the podium. He did so more directly at the start of training camp this year. At the time, Tagovailoa made it clear that wide receiver Tyreek Hill’s “I’m out” comments after Miami missed the playoffs last season still had consequences, even after Hill walked back what he originally said before apologizing and reaffirming his commitment to the Dolphins.

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“When you say something like that, you don’t just come back with, ‘My bad.’ You gotta work that relationship up,” Tagovailoa said in July. “He is working on himself.”

In early August, Hill described his quarterback’s remarks as “needed.”

“He’s obviously the leader of our team,” Hill said back then. “He sets the standard. So I’m just trying to be the best teammate, the best version of myself for this team I can be, man. Every day. Showing up for meetings, coming out here every day busting my tail in practice, I think it’s important.

“If you want to be able to leave a legacy, you got to be able to consistently do those kind of things.”

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Tagovailoa hasn’t just been holding his teammates to a higher standard. He’s been critical of himself, too. Leading up to the Dolphins’ Week 4 “Monday Night Football” showdown with the Jets, he admitted he wasn’t playing as well as he has in the past and that he needed to step up his game.

In each of the past two weeks, the Dolphins have let fourth-quarter leads slip. Sunday against the Chargers, Tagovailoa threw three interceptions, including one on Miami’s final possession, which was a last-ditch effort after Los Angeles made a go-ahead field goal with five seconds remaining.

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Tagovailoa and the Dolphins were showered with boos at Hard Rock Stadium.

Everyone is feeling the pressure in Miami. Fourth-year head coach Mike McDaniel’s seat is hot, and his franchise quarterback isn’t holding back his thoughts in front of the media.

https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/breaking-news/article/tua-tagovailoa-candid-after-dolphins-drop-to-1-5-says-some-teammates-arent-taking-players-only-meetings-seriously-214235215.html

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