Giants have formidable foes in Tua Tagovailoa and Dolphins
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) calls out signals during the first half against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium on Oct. 1, 2023, in Orchard Park, New York. (Al Diaz/Miami Herald/TNS) Credit: TNS/Al Diaz
Giants safety Xavier McKinney knows what the Giants are up against Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium.
The Dolphins are loaded.
Two weeks ago, they posted up the Broncos for 70 points.
Seventy points.
Miami became the fourth team in NFL history to reach that threshold. The others: the Bears in 1940, the Rams in 1950 and Washington in 1966.
And now the Dolphins are coming off a loss to Buffalo.
“I think it’s definitely going to be a challenge,” McKinney said. “We played them two years ago [a 20-9 Giants loss] and it was a challenge. They got a lot of speed, I think everyone knows that. They have a really explosive offense. We see that every week, but they put up 70 a couple weeks ago. We got to really be on our keys, be great tacklers, and we got to capitalize on their mistakes and force them to make mistakes.”
McKinney and Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa were teammates when Tagovailoa led Alabama to a 26-23 overtime win over Georgia in the 2018 College Football Playoff championship game. (That day, an ineffective Jalen Hurts was benched at halftime, making way for Tagovailoa’s heroics.)
So yes, McKinney is a believer.
“He’s special. That guy is special. I’ve seen it ever since being in college with him,'' McKinney said. "He’s just getting smarter and every day he’s getting better. You can see it. You can tell that he’s one of the elite quarterbacks we have in this league. And he’s a tough challenge having to face him.
"What you see is what you get. He’s a great leader on and off the field. He’s one of those guys you always want on your side. And you’re going to fight for him as well.”
The Dolphins aren’t just about Tagovailoa.
“You got Tua, but you also got Tyreek Hill, [Jaylen] Waddle,'' McKinney said. "A lot of fast guys. Guys who can take a 2-yard pass and turn it into a 50-yard run. There are a lot of challenges [in facing] them. But it’ll be fun.”
Coach Brian Daboll also is familiar with the challenge Tagovailoa poses. He recruited and coached him during his one season at Alabama as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
“I have a lot of respect for Tua and how he plays that position, some of the stuff he went through early on in his career,” Daboll said this past week. “He’s got great anticipation, he’s accurate, he’s a leader, and I am not surprised at all with the success he has had. He’s bounced back from some tough things injury-wise, but he’s a heck of a quarterback.”
Giants right tackle Evan Neal also was a teammate of Tagovailoa's at Alabama.
“Tua’s probably one of the toughest people I’ve ever played with,” Neal said. “He’s always playing through an injury or playing through some sort of adversity. Basically, having the weight of the entire world on his shoulders and he’s handled it with grace. I have nothing but respect for the guy.”
In Neal’s freshman year, which was Tagovailoa’s junior season, the offensive lineman remembered “different games where he may have gotten banged up, came out, returned a few games later. His body’s not 100% and he’s going out there for the team. Especially at the college level, that’s risky. I have nothing but respect for Tua.”
McKinney said he admires “that Tua never plays scared.”
“He goes out there and balls, regardless of the situation. I’ve never known him to duck anything or any type of smoke. I know what he’s made of, I know how he’s built, I know the cloth he’s cut from. So I don’t think he’s trying to stay out of harm’s way. I think he’s playing smart, like any quarterback would do.
“Tua’s done a lot of things [for the college game] that he doesn’t get the credit for. Me personally, I think he’s changed college football in terms of how much people are throwing in the college game now. A lot of times, even now, people try to find ways to diminish him, and week in and week out, he shows who he is. I’m extremely happy for him. But I knew he was going to do exactly what he’s doing now.”
The Giants' challenge on game day? To contain Tagovailoa.
If they can.
Kimberly Jones covers the Giants for Newsday, a beat she first worked in the early 2000s before joining the YES Network to cover the Yankees. She worked for the NFL Network for more than a decade and has been heard semi-regularly on WFAN.
