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Tua Tagovailoa won’t have to go far to begin his next chapter in the NFL.
The former Miami Dolphins quarterback “plans to sign” a one-year deal with the Atlanta Falcons, joining fellow left-handed pitcher Michael Penix Jr. in what is expected to be a quarterback competition ahead of the 2026 season, according to ESPN reported.
The Dolphins officially made their decision on Tagovailoa on Monday, although the writing has been on the wall for some time. New Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan announced the team would release him when free agency begins, cutting ties with the team’s 2020 first-round pick as a new regime comes in, including head coach Jeff Hafley.
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Tua Tagovailoa (1) of the Miami Dolphins leaves the field after a failed two-point conversion attempt in the second half of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, December 15, 2025. (Justin Berl/AP Photo)
Miami also quickly found a potential replacement for Tagovailoa, agreeing to terms with Malik Willis, who Sullivan and Hafley are familiar with since he backed up Jordan Love with the Green Bay Packers in recent seasons.
“As I have shared with Tua, I have great respect for the person and player he is,” Sullivan said in a statement. “On behalf of the Miami Dolphins, I expressed our gratitude for his many contributions, both on the field and in the community, during his six seasons in Miami.”
DOLPHINS APPEAR TO FIND TUA TAGOVAILOA REPLACEMENT AS FREE AGENCY OPENS
There has been talk about the possibility of Tagovailoa joining the Falcons, who also made a quarterback move by letting veteran Kirk Cousins leave to pursue his next opportunity in the league.
On a one-year contract (terms were not disclosed), Tagovailoa plans to compete in training camp with Penix, whom the Falcons took eighth overall in the 2024 NFL Draft in Washington. He is coming off a partial torn ACL suffered in Week 11 against the Carolina Panthers.
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) appears to pass during the first half of an NFL football game against the Atlanta Falcons October 26, 2025, in Atlanta, Georgia. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Before that, Penix, who was 3-6 in his nine starts last season for Atlanta, had totaled 1,982 yards with nine touchdown passes and three interceptions, completing 60.1 percent of his throws.
Meanwhile, Tagovailoa could benefit from a fresh start after struggling in his final year with Miami last season. He went 6-8 as the team’s starter, throwing for 2,660 yards with 20 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, as the Dolphins failed to once again qualify for the playoffs.
That wasn’t what the Dolphins had in mind after the Alabama product did enough to warrant a four-year contract extension worth $212.4 million at the start of the 2024 season. Now, Miami is expected to make Tagovailoa a post-June 1 designation, taking on $99 million in dead cap space spread over the next two seasons, ESPN reported.
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) throws a pass in the first half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Monday, September 29, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Florida. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Tagovailoa made just one playoff appearance and just one Pro Bowl in his six seasons with the Dolphins, which came in 2023 when Miami went 11-6.
The Falcons are desperate to get back to the playoffs, having last done so in 2017, where they lost in the divisional round. Under Matt Ryan at quarterback, the Falcons made the Super Bowl in 2016, although it was an infamous ending, after blowing a 28-3 lead to the New England Patriots.
