Dolphins' DeVante Parker: Tua Tagovailoa's mechanics 'look different' heading into Year 2

Might this lead to a level up for the 2020 fifth-overall pick?

Tua Tagovailoa knows he didn't have the best showing as an NFL rookie. It led to speculation the Miami Dolphins were still potentially in on drafting a quarterback atop the first round for a second consecutive year, but they instead doubled down on their belief in Tagovailoa's potential by reuniting him with former Alabama star wide receiver Jaylen Waddle. And with that, the pressure increases on Tagovailoa to level up in his second season -- something he feels is on the horizon. He's not the only one carrying that optimism, by the way, with longtime Dolphins receiver DeVante Parker being another.

Parker, the recipient of Tagovailoa's first-ever NFL touchdown, recently commented on the progress of the young quarterback, noting something he's seen change in his offseason development.

"His mechanics look different," Parker told Hal Habib of The Palm Beach Post. "Footwork, ball out quicker, all that."

That could come into play in a big way on game days, seeing as it was one of the biggest opportunities for improvement in a rookie season that was promising at times, but more often an uneven one for Tagovailoa. The former fifth-overall pick admits he wasn't comfortable calling plays in 2020, which contributed to some of his struggles, but vows that won't be an issue in 2021 -- for starters.

"Last year, for me, I wasn't as comfortable just in general," Tagovailoa said as OTAs wrap and the Dolphins begin preparing for mandatory minicamp, via NFL.com. "I wasn't comfortable calling plays. I think the guys that we had last year were phenomenal. I just didn't have the comfortability of checking plays, alerting plays. 

"I just rode with the play even if I knew in a way that it wasn't going to work. I was going to try to make it work. But the firepower we have this year, I mean, it's good, but you got to get it out to them, too. If you're able to protect yourself, then get it out to them and have them make plays, then you'll be good."

As as far as his surgically repaired hip goes? It's aces, to say the least, and that lends to his confidence going forward.

"I guess you could say the focus was the glutes to help support the hip," Tagovailoa said. "My hip feels 10 times better than it did last year. The confidence level for myself, I feel really confident coming into this second year after that injury two years ago."

The Dolphins are banking on Tua 2.0 in 2021, and he appears to be on track to deliver it.