On X (previously known as Twitter), Miami Dolphins star Tua Tagovailoa’s trainer in Nick Hicks simultaneously addressed concerns about the quarterback’s speed or lack thereof and gave a sneak peek into the signal-caller’s offseason training.
No need to speak like a dick head. The extra weight he was told he had to put on to “keep him safe” will no longer be there. Speed speed speed, agility agility agility is the goal this off season. Just be patient and you’ll see.
— Nick Hicks (@PER4ORM) March 15, 2024
Tagovailoa was one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL during the 2023 regular season from a passing standpoint. He led the NFL in passing yards with 4,624 while also racking up 29 passing touchdowns and 222 first downs passing.
Furthermore, Tagovailoa averaged 272.0 passing yards per game and 11.9 yards gained per pass completion.
While Tagovailoa thrived as a passer, he didn’t contribute much from a rushing standpoint. Across 17 games played (all starts), he accumulated 74 rushing yards and five first downs rushing on 35 rushing attempts. Plus, he didn’t register a single rushing touchdown in his fourth season in the NFL and as a member of the Dolphins.
In Miami’s playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, the 26-year-old totaled 25 rushing yards and two first downs rushing on three rushing attempts, and his longest rushing attempt was for 14 yards. Tagovailoa had one of his top rushing performances of the season against the Chiefs, as for reference, his longest rushing attempt during the regular season was for nine yards.
Arguably Miami’s best rusher during the 2023 regular season was running back Raheem Mostert. He had one of the best seasons of his career in his third season in Miami, as he appeared in 15 of the Dolphins’ 17 regular-season contests and totaled a league-best 18 rushing touchdowns to go along with 1,012 rushing yards and 59 first downs rushing.
Mostert also boasted impressive averages of 67.5 rushing yards per contest and 4.8 yards per carry.
Dolphins fans are surely hoping that Tagovailoa’s offseason training will result in him becoming a more effective rushing threat in the 2024 regular season. If Tagovailoa can become quicker with the ball in his hands, he could help Miami’s offense, which was already one of the league’s best in the 2023 regular season, become even harder to defend.
