The Miami Dolphins have officially moved on from Tua Tagovailoa, potentially paving the way for Longhorns legend Quinn Ewers to one day become the full-time starter.
The Miami Dolphins are forking over a historic amount of dead money to make sure Tua Tagovailoa is not their starting quarterback next season.
On the first day of free agency, Miami announced that it is designating Tagovailoa as a post-June 1 release. It's the easiest route to limit the eventual costs of a buyout to move on from the player, but the dead cap will still be substantial to the team's operations.
The Dolphins owe Tua upwards of $67 million with offsets next season, allowing him to play on a minimum salary with his next team, according to insider Ian Rapoport.
"I recently informed Tua and his representation that we are going to move in a new direction at the quarterback position and will be releasing him after the start of the new league year," general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan said in a statement. "As I shared with Tua, I have great respect for the person and player he is. On behalf of the Miami Dolphins, I expressed our gratitude for his many contributions, both on the field and in the community, during his six seasons in Miami."
His release leaves the franchise with $99 million of dead cap money ... and also a need for a new starting quarterback.
Enter Quinn Ewers, the 2025 seventh-rounder from your Texas Longhorns. Ewers got a taste of action at the tail end of this season for the Dolphins by starting three games and tossing for 622 yards overall on 66.3 percent completion.
Ewers quickly won't be alone in pursuing the starting job.
Following the news of Tagovailoa's release, Miami has agreed to terms on a contract with Green Bay Packers backup quarterback and free agent Malik Willis.
The former third-round pick out of Liberty has impressed in his spot work with the Packers behind Jordan Love. Last season Willis was 30-for-35 passing for 422 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. In 2024, he appeared in seven games and completed 40-of-54 passes for 550 yards with three TDs and no picks.
That's a combined 78.6 percent completion over the last two years. Video game-like numbers.
Miami is paying him as such, which will likely throw a wrench into Ewers' chances of earning the starting job while he's still on a rookie contract.
Sullivan concluded his statement after the Tagovailoa release: "As we move forward, we will be focused on infusing competition across the roster and establishing a strong foundation for this team as we work towards building a sustained winner."
Willis will sign a three-year, $67.5 million deal with $45 million guaranteed. It is set to expire just as Quinn's rookie contract is over.
There also won't be much continuity for Ewers to lean back on inside the building. Miami has moved on from head coach Mike McDaniel and have hired Jeff Hafley, who comes via the Green Bay Packers. There is some connection to Willis here, but Hafley was mostly in charge of the other side of the ball as a defensive coordinator.
