With new contract, can Tua Tagovailoa deliver long-sought success to the Miami Dolphins?

He finally got paid.

He has looked slimmer throughout the offseason and training camp.

Coaches and teammates have regarded him as being more outgoing and letting his personality show more.

But what kind of Tua Tagovailoa can the Miami Dolphins expect on the field this coming season?

How will Tagovailoa handle the added scrutiny that comes with being one of the highest-paid players in the league?

And how has he evolved as a quarterback since last season?

“These past two years and going on to this third year [as a starter], he’s settled down in this offense and he’s really picking things up at a high rate and he’s doing things that he feels comfortable at,” Dolphins running back Raheem Mostert said. “And if you look at how he’s possessing the ball and he’s getting the throws out, there’s really not any quarterback that’s in the league that’s doing what he’s doing, and it’s exciting to see.”

It was already shaping up to be a critical year for Tagovailoa and the Dolphins entering this offseason.

It became even more so when Miami signed their fifth-year quarterback to a four-year, $212.4 million extension.

With the Dolphins hitching their wagon to Tagovailoa, 26, for the foreseeable future, the pressure is on for him to help deliver what the franchise has been struggling to obtain now for half a century — Super Bowl championship.

“Now that all of this is done, this is behind us, we know heavy is the crown, so whoever’s wearing that. Like right now, I’m the highest-paid employee in this office,” Tagovailoa said the day after signing his contract in late July. “I’ve got to get my whatever together, I’ve got to get that right and get our guys moving in the direction that we need to go, to be able to do those things.”

Tagovailoa has taken steps forward in his development during the past two seasons as the Dolphins have surrounded him with perhaps the best array of offensive weapons in the NFL.

He’s coming off his first Pro Bowl season after leading the league with 4,624 passing yards and throwing for a career-high 29 touchdowns, 14 interceptions and a 101.1 passer rating a year after leading the league with a 105.5 rating.

A byproduct of that was finally being able to play a full 17-game slate after dealing with injuries and concussions, which many feared would cut his career short.

Quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator Darrell Bevell, who has coached some of the more mobile quarterbacks in the NFL including Russell Wilson and Brett Favre, believes Tagovailoa could show some more elusiveness in the pocket, which could help his durability while not sacrificing his ability to remain one of the more accurate passers in the league.

“Every year you try to evaluate where you’re at and try to make improvements,” Bevell said in early August. “He’s a little bit slimmer, but you want to make sure he’s still strong. It’s not like we’re trying to turn him into Lamar [Jackson] or Russell Wilson or any of those guys, but being able to escape the pocket and be a little more explosive can only benefit you. The strengths of his game are being on time, throwing with quickness, throwing with accuracy and seeing the field.”

Bevell is someone Tagovailoa has often credited for helping him make strides in his development playing the position.

Although listed at 6-1, 225 pounds, which is only two pounds lighter than his listed 227 last season, Tagovailoa has looked trimmer and remained effective during his limited action in the preseason in which he went 5 for 5 and led a touchdown drive in Miami’s second exhibition game against Washington on Aug. 17.

“It’s important to let the play come to you and let it happen,” Bevell said. “It’s not that he’s more mobile, we’re trying to get him to run more. If the play is not there when it breaks down, he has the ability to use his legs when he needs to, but it’s always about protecting the quarterback and not just with the offensive line. The quarterback has to protect the quarterback as well and make smart decisions.

“One of my favorite guys that I’ve coached was Russell who had great legs, but also made great decisions. It was very hard to hit the guy. He would run for extra yards and get out of bounds or get down and make good decisions. You’ve seen guys who don’t make decisions and how that’s affected them. It’s important if you have that ability that you make smart decisions.”

Tagovailoa’s familiarity entering his fourth year as an NFL starter and third year in coach Mike McDaniel’s offensive scheme are both keys that will benefit him, according to Bevell. Bevell cited not just Tagovailoa’s comfort level as a passer, but also in the timing he has with the Dolphins’ running backs in terms of fakes and handoffs in an offense predicated on consistent presnap motion and misdirection to fool defenses.

“The things we’re doing offensively, this is the third year, so more familiarity. Also our guys being where they’re supposed to be on every specific play,” Bevell said. “The more familiarity he has with us the better he will be as well.”

Last season, the end result of Tagovailoa’s season was painfully similar.

Tagovailoa’s first playoff game finished with a crushing 26-7 loss in the Wild Card round against Patrick Mahomes and the eventual Super Bowl champion Chiefs in the icy cold of Kansas City.

In the end, Tagovailoa knows all these potential improvements won’t mean much if he can’t lead the Dolphins over that major hurdle this season, which begins with securing their first playoff win since 2000.

“We haven’t won the games that we’ve wanted to win. Deep into the playoffs, get deep into the playoffs. Win the games that matter, that’s what I would say,” Tagovailoa said during the preseason. “All of that is cool, but I could’ve been the worst, had the worst passer rating, I could’ve thrown for a thousand yards; but if we were in those games and we were winning those big-time games and we got to go and win the championship, I’d trade all of that. I’d trade all of that for that.”