The Miami Dolphins have surprisingly been one of the worst teams in the NFL this season, and are off to a 1-6 start with questions looming around Mike McDaniel's future with the team. Miami's only win came against the currently winless New York Jets, so they have been largely uncompetitive in any game against teams better than they are.
Things hit rock bottom in Week 7, when the Dolphins went on the road in bad weather against the Cleveland Browns and were crushed in a 31-6 rout. Tagovailoa threw three interceptions and was benched in the second half, and the Dolphins had no answer for a bad Browns team on both ends of the floor.
The Dolphins have just one star receiver left after Tyreek Hill suffered a season-ending knee injury during that win over the Jets, and that is Jaylen Waddle. Despite clearly being the best pass-catcher on the roster at this point, Waddle caught just one pass for 15 yards on four targets in Sunday's loss.
On Wednesday, Tagovailoa gave a bizarre reason for why Waddle was so quiet in the loss.
#Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa said part of the reason he didn’t target Jaylen Waddle much vs. the #Browns was because he had trouble seeing him over the O-line and D-line:
“I’m not the tallest guy back there. Sometimes when that happens you don’t want to just throw it blindly.” pic.twitter.com/gxlJOADdjp
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) October 22, 2025
“I think with that, some of it has to do with being able to see guys,” Tagovailoa said. “I'm not the tallest guy back there, so being able to see. Sometimes what that happens, you don't wanna throw it blindly. You've gotta progress. So I think that had some merit to why that happened for Waddle.”
Nothing Tagovailoa said was incorrect, but it was a bit odd to see him admit it especially when talking about his star receiver. For a Dolphins offense that couldn't get the ball moving at all against a good defense, getting the star receiver involved would be a great way to get the chains moving.
The weather likely played a role in why the passing game as a whole — not just Waddle — had a quiet day. Being at the top of the scouting report for a very good defense is another reason. However, this is the fourth time in seven games that Waddle has been held under 50 yards, so McDaniel and Tagovailoa have to start finding ways to get him the ball if they want things to turn around for this offense.
