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Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has been performing at an MVP level for much of the 2023 season after cleaning up the sloppy plays that plagued him early in his career.
However, he made a mistake at the worst time on Sunday Night Football against the Philadelphia Eagles, and it led to a 31-17 loss by the Dolphins.
Tagovailoa threw a costly interception early in the fourth quarter that halted all of Miami’s momentum. The Dolphins had driven into Eagles territory before he floated a pass toward the goal line that landed in the hands of Philadelphia cornerback Darius Slay.
The Eagles extended their lead on their very next possession with a 13-play, 83-yard touchdown drive to put the game away.
Fans online rightfully criticized Tagovailoa for his game-changing interception, as the Dolphins never recovered from the play:
Bleacher Report @BleacherReport
TUA PICKED OFF BY DARIUS SLAY 😳
Emmanuel Acho @EmmanuelAcho
That ball by Tua hung in the air way too long, but Mostert could’ve helped him out.
Jump back into the defender and that’s a P.I, Dolphins ball on the 1 yard line. Instead it’s Eagles going the other way.
Game changing play, @bigplay24slay! 👏🏾👏🏾
Justis Mosqueda @JuMosq
Gotta be frustrating to be a Dolphins fan and see Tua throw a beach ball into the air and know you have to defend his honor with misinformation online
Skip Bayless @RealSkipBayless
Another Tua puff ball floating into an easy Slay INT. That should do it for the Eagles.
Reason @the_real_reason
Bad pass by Tua on the INT but Mostert (who I believe was the intended target) was straight up turned around by the defender. #finsup
Rich @richjmadrid
That ball hung on Tua but that’s at least 2 times now Mostert or the other WR have ended up in the same area with bad results
Aaron Katzker @AarontheBrain
Was not a smart decision by Tua, and more often than not that pass will be picked, but the amount of no calls on Philly in a game when Miami has been called for 9 penalties cannot be ignored.
Brett Kollmann @BrettKollmann
Tua absolutely did not have to try to launch this off his back foot while in field goal range. Can’t try to play hero ball in this situation, man. https://t.co/nH3OsSYHee
Tagovailoa finished with 216 yards, a touchdown and an interception on 23-of-32 passing. He was sacked three times in the loss.
While Tagovailoa’s play on Sunday left much to be desired, the Miami offense lacked balance as the team finished with just 45 rushing yards on 12 attempts. The lack of sustained drives on offense allowed the Eagles to wear down the Dolphins’ defense, and it showed on Philadelphia’s late touchdown drive.
After falling to 5-2, Miami will look to bounce back next Sunday in a division game against the New England Patriots.
