Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa appears to call out teammates who are ‘planning

The Miami Dolphins came into Sunday with a must-win scenario to keep their playoff hopes alive in the AFC Wildcard race.

But despite Miami’s defense limiting the high-octane Texans offense to just 181 total yards (104 passing, 74 rushing), forcing a turnover and holding Houston to just 5-of-13 on third down, the Dolphins offense was a major problem.

Since coming back from injury, starting QB Tua Tagovailoa has played as well as any QB in the NFL, helping lead the Dolphins to four wins in their last five games heading into Sunday’s road trip to Houston. But on Sunday, Tagovailoa struggled mightily, finishing the game with 196 passing yards, one touchdown and three costly interceptions that proved to be the difference.

And as Tagovailoa struggled, the Dolphins’ offense — which has played well as of late — reverted to the mistakes that plagued them earlier in the year when their starting QB was injured and they dropped to the No. 32 offensive unit in the league.

Tyreek Hill — one of the most dynamic WRs in the NFL — didn’t have a single catch at halftime and finished the game with two receptions for 36 yards.

Miami converted just 4-of-13 third down attempts and Tagovailoa was sacked three times. On the few chances they had to get in the end zone early in the game, the Dolphins settled for field goals and despite making it a 20-12 game after a third-quarter TD, the Dolphins could never find a rhythm the remainder of the game and that ended up being the final score.

While it felt like Tagovailoa was taking a shot at specific players who may be already planning postseason vacations, he appeared to catch himself at the end of the eye-popping statement.

“ I think that’s the kind of guys we have in our locker room,” Tagovailoa concluded.

Regardless, it was an odd statement from the Miami Dolphins QB. It will be interesting to see how the next three games play out.