It appears the the Miami Dolphins are learning towards a decision when it comes to who will be starting at quarterback for Week 1 of the upcoming season.
According to a recent report, it appears that veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick is on course to be under center for the first game of the season.
“Using all the contextual clues we have, Ryan Fitzpatrick is on a glide path to starting Week 1,” Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald reported.
“The Dolphins have made a point to promote him publicly. He knows coordinator Chan Gailey’s offense better than anyone on the team. Tua Tagovailoa acknowledged Thursday he still has a ton to learn. [Josh] Rosen seems more likely to be quarantined as an insurance policy this fall than see the field.
“But likely does not mean certain. Things could change in the next month. Tagovailoa could ball out. Rosen could take a huge leap forward. Fitzpatrick could regress.”
Given the unique nature of this year’s preseason, it would be fairly shocking to see Tagovailoa as the starter early in the year. After all, there will be no preseason games for him to take part in due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Beyond that, Tagovailoa is still fresh off of being deemed physically able to take part in practice without limitations. He suffered a devastating hip injury last season while at the University of Alabama.
When the Dolphins made Tagovailoa the No. 5 overall pick in this year’s draft, they surely saw him as the franchise quarterback of the future. For that reason, a patient approach arguably makes the most sense.
Last season, Fitzpatrick threw for 3,529 yards and 20 touchdowns with a completion percentage of 62.0 percent. While he may lack the elite physical talent that Tagovailoa possesses, his experience and leadership will hopefully help the Dolphins achieve success early in the season.
