Omar Kelly: Tua isn't a superhero, so let's not expect him to be in his return

MIAMI — As painful and uncomfortable as the 2024 season has been, view this as a blessing in disguise, one that will hopefully allow South Florida’s NFL franchise to put things in proper perspective.

What perspective is a 2-4 start supposed to bring?

If you haven’t gained a greater appreciation for Tua Tagovailoa’s game, and what he brings to the Miami Dolphins, you need your head and eyes examined.

Admit it, we have taken his accuracy, efficiency, quick decision-making, poise in the pocket, and even his clutch moments (he does have fourth-quarter victories) for granted.

Tagovailoa is not Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, nor Josh Allen, but these past four games have proven he’s not chopped liver.

They have also provided an important lesson that it’s not his weaponry, the coaching, or the caliber of opponents that’s behind the dynamic offenses Miami has showcased with Tagovailoa — the 2022 passer rating leader and 2023 yards thrown for leader — at the helm.

Tagovailoa was the main entree, not a side dish.

“He was our starting quarterback, quarterback No. 1 coming into the season. Pro Bowl quarterback based on what he did last year. We know what he can do,” cornerback Jalen Ramsey said after Sunday’s 16-10 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, which happened to be yet another game where Miami’s defense could be proud of how they performed. “[Tua] has good chemistry with the guys and command over the offense. All that good stuff.”

Without the good stuff, Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle are off to the worst start in their accomplished NFL careers.

Why? Because they don’t have their quarterback who consistently puts the ball in spots that give each a chance to produce run-after- catch yards, injecting the fear factor that makes Miami’s offense so scary.

Mike McDaniel didn’t all of a sudden go from coaching genius to imbecile.

He hasn’t had his quarterback who can execute his complex offense.

Think about it, do you really think McDaniel called 26 passing plays in Sunday’s loss to the Colts and Hill and Waddle were the intended target for just four of those throws?

Not every quarterback can handle the motions and shifts that make Miami’s offense so difficult to play.

Not every quarterback pulls the trigger as fast as Tagovailoa does, getting the ball out of his hand at the snap of a finger.

Not every quarterback throws passes to his receivers before they even make their break.

That’s why Tagovailoa’s absence is a justifiable reason the Dolphins have gone from one of the best offenses the previous two seasons to the worst offense in 2024 after six games, four of which didn’t include Tagovailoa.

Problem is, it’s unreasonable, unfair to expect Tagovailoa to be reinserted and poof, the magic returns.

Tagovailoa will likely spend weeks working off the rust his concussion created absence produced because he hasn’t been allowed to throw a pass to Hill and Waddle for 38 days because of the NFL rules he and the team had to follow until Monday because Miami placed him in injured reserve so his brain could heal.

“It’ll be good to get him back, but at the same time we have to fix up the details. We can’t have any turnovers,” said tailback Raheem Mostert, whose third-quarter fumble put the Colts in position to tie the score 10-10. “At the end of the day we have to man up and do what’s right for the team.”

What’s right is to stop the undisciplined play that continues to plague the Dolphins, and has honestly been an issue for three seasons now because of the loosey-goosey operation McDaniel runs.

“That would be huge for us,” tight end Jonnu Smith said when asked about Tagovailoa’s return. “With that being said, one man can’t win a football game. It’s going to take all of us, coaches included.”

Better play calling is needed. Better utilization of the personnel should be demanded.

And it’s time for McDaniel to start holding players, and coaches more accountable for their mistakes.

Julian Hill’s error-prone play should have led to a demotion weeks ago.

Special teams has been a disaster for three seasons, yet nothing continues to get done about it.

When was the last time a Dolphins player not on the practice squad lost his job for performance reasons?

And it’s time for general manager Chris Grier and his staff to be held accountable for building an old and injury-prone roster (bad cap management will do that), not upgrading a troublesome offensive line (who’s laughing now Chris?), and not having a better backup quarterback for a team that’s led by the NFL’s most fragile quarterback (it’s true, and the first step to addressing that problem is admitting it).

“There are a lot of things that need to be addressed and fixed. [Tua] coming back will help us a bit, but it’s not going to solve all the problems. We need every single man to improve throughout the season,” said fullback Alec Ingold, who also committed a costly second-half fumble, which squandered a scoring opportunity while trailing. “It’s going to be a whole new look to our offense and what we’ve got going on this next however many weeks. And every single person needs to improve.

“Every single man needs to be better.”

Every single person in the organization needs to show up and do their job with vigor and discipline, and act like their future depends on it because it should.

As good as he is, Tagovailoa is not going to be this season’s savior.

Everyone in the organization needs to take personal accountability and begin the process of saving themselves.

____