MIAMI — Tua Tagovailoa entering his fifth NFL season can now finally say he feels the full respect, faith and belief the Miami Dolphins haven’t always shown him.

Took awhile, but the team gave him all of that on Friday in the form of the kind of money the fortunate call generational wealth — a four-year, $212.4 million contract extension including $167 million guaranteed.

I have been saying and writing for awhile that Tagovailoa had attained a stature deserving of such reward. The quarterback and his management team had been insistent on a deal that would put him in the league’s growing top tier of QBs in the $50 million-per-year club.

At last, after months of negotiations and however reluctantly, the Dolphins agreed.

Friday’s news declared to Tagovailoa he stands firm as the club’s quarterback of the future and is close enough to elite to suit Miami’s needs. Having a fully healthy season last year, making the Pro Bowl and leading the NFL in passing yards helped forcefully make his case.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter first reported the news and Tua, smiling and seemingly giddily, happily confirmed it on his Instagram, thanking everyone with the team from owner to coaches to teammates to fans.

“I wanna thank Mike McDaniel for believing in me,” he said. “Also a big shoutout to my teammates for supporting me. Fins up!”

Belief and support have not been with Tagovailoa in abundance before this.

Didn’t have it when owner Stephen Ross went after a trade for Deshaun Watson that never happened.

Didn’t have it when Ross then tried to replace Tua with Tom Brady and cost his team a first-round draft pick for tampering.

Didn’t have it when he dealt with a proneness to concussions until last year’s clean sheet.

Now he finally feels the love with the biggest contract in Dolphins’ history, as only the second QB since Dan Marino retired (the other was Ryan Tannehill) to earn a multi-year contract extension.

And now Tua will be back for a (nearly) full training camp as he tries to lead an end to Miami’s NFL-worst 23 straight seasons without a playoff win.

With money comes pressure; now Tagovailoa has both.

He is 32-19 as a starter. That’s pretty good. Now the playoffs are how he’ll be judged.

The Dolphins moving forward are paying him like he’s one of the best quarterbacks in the league.

Now he has to do more than play like it.

He has to win like it.

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