New Dolphins defender unintentionally throws shade at Tua Tagovailoa

With his contract set to expire in 2025, Tua Tagovailoa is currently hoping to land a lucrative multi-year extension from the Miami Dolphins before the start of the 2024 season.

Most are expecting the Dolphins' starting quarterback to be in search of an annual salary that compares closely to some of the highest-paid signal-callers in the entire NFL. With Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff just signing an extension that has an annual average value of $53M, how much will Miami be willing to pay Tagovailoa?

Spotrac.com currently has the Dolphins' starting passer with an estimated market value of just under $50M. Whether Tagovailoa is actually worth that yearly amount or more is up to Miami, but there are certainly plenty of people who don't believe he should one of the highest-paid quarterbacks in the NFL.

Among this group might even be one of his new teammates, as first-year Dolphins safety Jordan Poyer recently declared Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills to be the "best quarterback in the league."

Now, Poyer did say this during a charity softball game in Buffalo, so he was likely catering to the people in attendance. But still, Tagovailoa likely isn't too thrilled about his new teammate praising the quarterback of another franchise, let alone a quarterback who plays for a division rival.

Whether it was intentional or not, Poyer's comments could easily viewed as a slight towards Tagovailoa. No one is asking the veteran safety to come out and lie about Tagovailoa being the best signal-caller in the NFL. But, at the very least, not declaring another team's quarterback as the best in the league seems like it would've been a better decision.

Tagovailoa is coming off of a 2023 season with Miami in which he completed 69.3% of his passes for 4,624 yards, 29 touchdowns and 14 interceptions, all of which resulted in him earning a 101.1 passer rating.

At 26 years old, it's not crazy to assume that Tagovailoa still has at least a handful of seasons of good football left in him. Before rewarding him with an extension, however, the Dolphins must decide if they believe he is the quarterback who can lead the franchise to their first Super Bowl win since 1973.