Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa Finally Reveals Brutal Details of Brian Flores’ Treatment

The Miami Dolphins found their franchise quarterback in Tua Tagovailoa, but that might have not been the case two seasons ago. Before Mike McDaniel came around the Dolphins were led by Brian Flores.

More news: Dolphins’ Tyreek Hill On Seeing Tua Tagovailoa Land Record-Breaking Deal: ‘Best Day Ever’

Flores was a “no-nonsense” type of coach, but one that did not mesh well with every player. That was especially the case for Tagovailoa. It had become well-known that Flores was attempting to replace Tagovailoa, as the team was often in headlines regarding trades for Deshaun Watson and Tom Brady.

Instead of getting rid of Tagovailoa, the team instead relieved Flores of his head coaching duties, replacing him with McDaniel. The McDaniel away of things has certainly warranted a better result, as Tagovailoa has emerged as one of the best quarterbacks in the league.

Though Tagovailoa has briefly mentioned his treatment from Flores, the signal-caller has now gone into more detail about what he was told.

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#Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa discusses the difference between having Brian Flores as his head coach vs. having Mike McDaniel.

This is a brutally honest answer from Tua… Positive energy and empowering someone goes a long way.

(🎥 @LeBatardShow)pic.twitter.com/DxUJuyfuxg

— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) August 19, 2024

Tagovailo joined “The Dan Le Batard Show With Stugotz” when he was asked about the difference between McDaniel and Flores.

“Can you explain to us the difference in practical terms between having a coach who did believe in you the way he did and the difference between that and what was happening with Flores?”

“To put it in simplest terms. If you woke up every morning and I told you that you suck at what you did, that you don’t belong doing what you do, that you shouldn’t be here, that this guy should be here, that you haven’t earned this right, and then you have somebody else come in and tell you, ‘dude, you are the best fit for this, you are accurate, you are the best…'”

Tagovailoa begins answering the question and alluding to everything that Flores had reportedly said to him during his time coaching. He also equates it to the sheer positivity that McDaniel offered instead.

Many knew that Flores was berating Tagovailoa, but to this degree is incredibly disappointing.

“How would it make you feel listening to one or the other? You see what I’m saying? You hear it, regardless of what it is, the good or the bad. You hear it more and more, you start to actually believe that. I don’t care who you are, you can be the President of the United States. You have a terrible person telling you things that you don’t want to hear, or that you probably shouldn’t be hearing, you are going to start believing that about yourself.”

Tagovailoa fully explained the mental anguish he was under after hearing so much negativity from Flores, that he began to believe it about himself. The good news is he and McDaniel came into each other’s lives, and Tagovailoa is now far better off.

Tagovailoa led the league with a 105.5 passer rating in the 2022 season and also led the league in passing yards with 4,624 yards.

Read more: Dolphins, Tua Tagovailoa Agree to Massive Contract Extension

Instead of being overly frustrated with Tagovailoa and not giving him a chance to flourish like Flores, McDaniel chose to nurture the young quarterback. The results have now led to Tagovailo signing a four-year, $212 million deal.

The Dolphins are playoff favorites, and a huge reason is because of Tagovailoa’s skillset. That skillset was clearly not appreciated by Flores.