Tua’s practice status ‘fluid’ amid contract talks

MIAMI — Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa will practice Wednesday as the team opens training camp but will not participate in 11-on-11 drills.

Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel on Wednesday acknowledged Tagovailoa’s ongoing contract negotiations with the team since the start of the offseason. The former No. 5 pick attended mandatory minicamp in its entirety in June but was absent for at least a portion of the team’s offseason program before that.

When he was present during organized team activities, he did not participate in team drills; it’s a format McDaniel expects the Dolphins to follow for at least the foreseeable future.

“It’s very fluid,” McDaniel said. “We’re taking it day by day, today I expect it to be kind of like OTAs and we’ll move on from there.”

Tagovailoa led the NFL in passing yards in 2023 with a career-high 4,624 yards and 29 touchdowns, while quelling concerns about his durability by playing all 18 of the Dolphins’ games. He and the team have been negotiating a new contract extension since the beginning of the offseason with both sides publicly stating their desire to get a deal done.

Nothing has come to fruition as of late July, however, despite Tagovailoa’s visible agitation with the lack of a resolution during minicamp.

The price to reach said resolution may be climbing.

This offseason, Jared Goff and Trevor Lawrence signed extensions with the Detroit Lions and Jacksonville Jaguars worth $212 million and $275 million, respectively. Both deals are among the three most expensive contracts in the NFL in terms of average annual value.

“I mean, I’m not blind to people that are in my position that are getting paid,” Tagovailoa said in June. “Am I concerned about it? I’m not concerned about it, but there’s a lot of discussion that we’ve had that we just are trying to move that thing into the right direction where we can both be happy.

“I’ll tell you one thing; the market is the market. If we didn’t have a market, then none of that would matter. It would just be an organizational thing. It didn’t matter if that guy got paid that because it’s up to the organization. So that’s what I would say — the market is the market. That’s it.”

Tagovailoa reported for veteran report day Tuesday and has been in contact with both the team and his teammates.

Wide receiver Tyreek Hill said he expected the “competitive” quarterback to practice when he spoke to the media Tuesday and spoke highly of Tagovailoa’s mental state.

“Tua, he’s in great spirits,” Hill said. “Obviously, I can’t speak on his part about the contract situation because that’s his business — his personal business — and as his teammate, as his brother, I try to stay out of that. But as far as how he feels as far as mental health standpoint, he feels amazing. He’s very excited to be back in the building with all of the guys, so it’s great to see him out there.

“Still coming in to work, still about his business without having a deal done and it’s just been awesome, man. Just having him around. Just his presence means a lot to a lot of the guys, especially me, so excited.”

Tagovailoa is not the only player who will be absent from team drills Wednesday.

Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was placed on the active/physically unable to perform list, as were pass rushers Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb, and linebacker David Long Jr.

McDaniel said the starters’ absence presents an opportunity for players further down the depth chart to prove not only their mental fortitude, but also what they can do with additional reps.

“One thing about being in the National Football League is there’s stuff that goes on that you can’t control,” McDaniel said. “I’m not going to forecast how long anything looks a certain way — we’ll adjust however we see fit to make sure we’re appropriately positioning our players for success. All of those things are a distraction if you allow them to be.

“Myself, I have open conversations about that stuff with the team to understand that we’re not robots. You have to consciously make sure that you’re worried about the right stuff. I think our team is.”