The Miami Dolphins and Jacksonville Jaguars have more in common than just a state. They both have blue-chip quarterbacks who were drafted in the first five picks after winning championships in college.
But unlike Tua Tagovailoa, Trevor Lawrence knows he’ll be a Florida man for a long time.
Lawrence beat Tagovailoa to the finish line in the race for his Powerball-sized contract extension, signing a record-tying five-year, $275 million deal to remain in Jacksonville through the 2030 season.
Tagovailoa, meanwhile, is in the final eight months of his rookie deal, and the uncertainty of his future has impacted his mood. He skipped some of the team’s voluntary program this spring and could barely hide his frustration with the organization’s negotiating position when he met with reporters.
Contract Update for Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa
And the tension will only continue to ramp up should Tagovailoa fail to secure a market-value deal from the Dolphins before the start of training camp in three weeks.
While it’s unclear what the Dolphins have offered Tagovailoa, it’s fair to assume that if they put Lawrence’s $55 million AAV deal on the table — with the $200 million in guarantees that came with it — he would probably have signed on the dotted line by now.
The Jaguars were willing to make that commitment to Lawrence even though his career stats are worse than Tagovailoa’s and he had an extra year left on his current deal.
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What that extension bought the Jaguars and their coach Doug Pederson is what Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel surely wishes he had ahead of a hugely significant football season: Peace of mind.
Pederson, who will be in Lake Tahoe next week to participate in the American Century Golf Championship Tournament, met with reporters via Zoom on Tuesday in a promotional call for the event.
And he could barely hide his relief and happiness that the Lawrence contract negotiations are over.
“Obviously, the impact of Trevor long-term in Jacksonville, the face of the franchise, the franchise quarterback, to get him locked up and secured for many, many years, I think it’s a sign of the commitment from the organization, his side as well, that, you know, the team is in good hands from the quarterback position,” Pederson said.
“We all know that to win in this league, you’ve got to have a quarterback, and we feel really good about that. I feel really good about that. He’s our guy, and we’ve got to just continue to work and put in the time to get better each and every season.”
While Pederson never discussed Tua specifically, he did inadvertently point out how his quarterback handled any contract drama differently than Miami’s QB did this offseason.
“What I saw from Trevor this offseason is how he approached it,” Pederson said. “He knew he was in a contract situation, but it didn’t affect him, it didn’t bother him. He just came to work every single day. It’s a voluntary program and he was there every single day, leading our football team, leading our franchise, and that’s what it takes.
“That’s what it takes from your star quarterback, and he’s done that.”