Could the Miami Dolphins explore alternate options at quarterback this offseason? Those options could include Kirk Cousins, considering Tua Tagovailoa’s performance at the end of the regular season and postseason.
The Dolphins lost three marquee matchups in a row to end the season. Tua had a terrible outing in cold weather against the Kansas City Chiefs to end the Dolphins' season.
Following the wild-card loss, Tua backed off any discussion of signing an extension with the Dolphins this offseason. Unless a signing happens following the late-season collapse, Tua will head into the 2024 season on the last year of his rookie contract after the Dolphins picked up his fifth-year option last offseason.
Mike Sando of The Athletic made an argument for Miami to acquire Cousins and trade Tua. Sando wrote:
"The equation here is that Cousins and a draft pick (or picks) would be better than continuing with Tagovailoa. The Dolphins do not have third- or fourth-round picks in the upcoming draft, so they could use the capital. Cousins, a free agent in March, would have to prioritize Miami as his preferred landing spot, which seemingly would be easy for him, given what the Dolphins offer in terms of McDaniel’s personality, the scheme and weaponry."
Per Sando, a few NFL executives think the Dolphins should explore shopping Tua to teams with indoor stadiums or play in warm-weather cities. The Atlanta Falcons are an obvious choice because they play in a dome and would compete in a toasty-NFC South division:
“Your upside with Tua certainly seems limited,” an exec said, “so let’s say you can trade him. I would be exploring, ‘OK, Tua, we can win games with, probably not winning a championship with. Kirk Cousins, we can win games with, probably not winning a championship with. But our resources are better spent on Cousins plus draft picks than they are on just Tua…"
“If you could get a 2 and a 3 for Tua and sign Kirk, I’d want to make sure I felt comfortable about having him for three years from a health standpoint,” a different exec said. “I do think Tua works much better in a domed stadium where you know half your games are played in pristine conditions."
Cousins has expressed interest in re-signing with the Minnesota Vikings this offseason. Because of the Vikings’ cap space issues with wide receiver Justin Jefferson, Cousins’ best bet to join a winning team might be elsewhere.
Cousins would have an excellent chance to make a Super Bowl run in Miami. He’d have Tyreek Hill and Jalen Waddle to work with. When healthy, the defense has the talent to be one of the better units in the league.
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