Lamar Jackson negotiations are reminder of decisions that await Dolphins for Tagovailoa

If the Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson was the most-discussed quarterback during the NFL offseason, then the Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa wasn’t far behind.

National pundits debated how rich of a long-term extension Jackson, the 2019 league MVP, deserved. But it wasn’t long before they pivoted to discuss how important the 2022 season is for Tagovailoa, who has been inconsistent in the two years since being selected No. 5 overall in the 2020 Draft.

When the two quarterbacks meet at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Sunday for their Week 2 matchup, Jackson’s unique contract impasse can serve as a reminder of the important decisions that await the Dolphins regarding Tagovailoa’s future.

The Ravens failed to reach an agreement on a new deal ahead of Jackson’s self-imposed Week 1 deadline. The team is shelving further contract talks until the offseason while Jackson plays the final year of his rookie deal on the fifth-year option, worth about $23 million.

Meanwhile, the Dolphins’ front office will also be on the clock with a May 1 deadline to decide whether to exercise Tagovailoa’s fifth-year option, which would keep him on contract through the 2024 season.

At the NFL Scouting Combine in March, Dolphins general manager Chris Grier was asked whether he believed Tagovailoa, now 14-8 as a starter, can be an “elite quarterback.”

“I wouldn’t say he can’t be,” Grier said. “It’s too early. He’s played 20 games, maybe? The first year, he was in and out and missed some games this year. All I know is he’s won games, even with last year. It’s hard to win games in this league and I know people want to say he doesn’t throw the ball downfield but he’s incredibly accurate in what he does, and that was the real exciting part for [Dolphins coach] Mike [McDaniel] and the coaching staff, is his accuracy.”

Though Grier did not give a definite answer on his view of Tagovailoa’s potential, the Dolphins’ decision on his fifth-year option would give a bit of insight into the thinking of the front office. Picking up the option would be the first step in keeping Tagovailoa in Miami long-term, or at least in the short-term, while they sort out the organization’s future.

Tagovailoa has cap hits of $8 million and $9 million in 2022 and 2023, and a fifth-year option would also come at a team-friendly cap number. It is projected to be worth a fully-guaranteed $22.6 million in 2024 based on playing time thresholds, according to Over The Cap. It could increase to $28 million if he’s named to the Pro Bowl this season. Tagovailoa is also eligible for a contract extension after his third season.

In the last three draft classes preceding the 24-year-old Tagovailoa, six of the 11 first-round quarterbacks — Jackson, Watson, Patrick Mahomes, Baker Mayfield, Josh Allen and Kyler Murray — got their fifth-year option picked up by the team that drafted them.

Of those six players, only Mayfield — who was traded from the Cleveland Browns to the Carolina Panthers in July — and Jackson haven’t received top-of-the-market deals from their original team.

With the salary cap continuing to rise and Tagovailoa’s draftmates Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert next in line for mega deals, the contract Murray signed in July, worth $46.1 million a year, is expected to be the going rate for a franchise quarterback.

It’s the type of sizable commitment that shows an organization’s belief in a quarterback as its unquestioned leader, one that Grier to date hasn’t stated publicly. It’s also the type of commitment that could be made more confidently if Tagovailoa has the breakout season many are anticipating with McDaniel by his side.

Tagovailoa’s first game of the season, a 270-yard, one-touchdown performance in a win over the New England Patriots, was a good start. However, as Tagovailoa has become one of the most polarizing players in the league, every game — and even throw — has naturally become a referendum on his future.

Just this week, the latest opinions of Tagovailoa were again found all over the spectrum, from ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky’s praise of his Week 1 outing to former New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton’s belief that he’ll be benched sometime this season.

“I think it comes with the territory. I think it’s part of playing the quarterback position,” quarterbacks coach Darrell Bevell said. “You’re always going to be looked at. I think the year that Tua is in, everybody says ‘Oh, this is the important one.’ But I couldn’t be more happy and excited about what Tua has been doing. The growth process that he’s had, the information that he’s digesting, learning a new offense again. He’s doing a really good job in it.”