There will be no quarterback controversy in Miami, where incumbent starter Ryan Fitzpatrick says he’s happy to help rookie Tua Tagovailoa in any way he can, and ready either to start or to hand the job off to the youngster.
“I don’t know how much time it will be before Tua will be in the lineup,” Fitzpatrick said, via the Palm Beach Post. “I know that I am the placeholder. We’ve already had that conversation. I’ve told him, ‘I’m going to do the best I can to lead this team and win football games when I’m out there.’ . . . Whenever it is that Tua gets his chance, whether it’s early or late or whenever, I’m going to be his biggest cheerleader.”
Fitzpatrick said he’ll do everything he can to earn the starting job, but he realizes Tagovailoa will be the franchise leader soon enough.
“I’m going to go out there competing every single day as I know the younger guys are,” Fitzpatrick said. “You can even just tell the guys are going to gravitate to him. There’s just something about him that is very likable and I can already tell that he’s going to be one of those guys that gets along with everybody, that guys are going to want to follow. He just has that kind of aura about him.”
There’s also something about Fitzpatrick that makes him the right kind of veteran quarterback to have around as the Dolphins transition to Tua.