Tua Tagovailoa, the NFL’s best downfield passer

On an individual level, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa had an extremely successful year in 2022, no matter how you spin it.

But, critics continue to point to Tagovailoa’s supposed inability to push the ball downfield, pointing to Mike McDaniel’s system (as well as the likes of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle) as an explanation for his performances.

However, a deeper dive into the numbers show that this isn’t the case.

As per Warren Sharp on Twitter, last season, Tagovailoa threw 64% of his passes 5+ yards downfield, which was the highest rate in the NFL (out of 29 QBs with over 300 attempts).