Tua Tagovailoa scolds performance, 'not proud of where I'm at' after Dolphins loss, Mike McDaniel jeers grow

Tagovailoa held himself accountable after a three-interception benching against Cleveland

A week after apologizing to teammates for a post-game call out, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa scolded his own play in Sunday's 31-6 loss to the Cleveland Browns. After he threw three interceptions for the second consecutive game, Tagovailoa assessed his play honestly and assumed accountability after his benching for rookie Quinn Ewers in the second half.

Miami is 1-6 as heat on coach Mike McDaniel continues to intensify.

"Definitely not happy, not proud of where I'm at with my play, with how I've gone about things this year," Tagovailoa said after averaging just 4.3 yards per attempt and finishing the game with a career-low 24.1 passer rating. "I know I've gotta be a lot better — and I've been better for the Miami Dolphins in years past. But this isn't years past, this is this year. Just trying to maneuver everything and build a collection of guys to come along with me. I've gotta be able to multitask if that makes sense, and while doing that and get in that flow."

Sacked twice, Tagovailoa finished 12-of-23 for 100 yards. McDaniel benched him for Ewers with 8:16 left in the contest and the Dolphins trailing, 31-6.

Tagovailoa credited Cleveland's defense, but said his team "shot itself in the foot" too many times to be productive. Tagovailoa never found a rhythm from the pocket and now leads the NFL in interceptions, two years after leading the league in passing yards and reaching his first Pro Bowl.

"Starts with me, can't turn the ball over, gotta get the operation going with the guys," Tagovailoa said. "Regardless of whatever the situation or circumstance may be, we just gotta stick together. That's it. That's how we move forward from this."

Miami did "everything to lose the game" according to McDaniel, who pointed to 11 penalties — the most since 2022 — and four turnovers for primary reasons his players appeared frustrated in the second half.

Trying to climb his way out of the Dolphins' worst start since 2021, McDaniel said "all options are on the table" at quarterback after the loss before shifting attention to his job status.

"The way I look at this job is I find it very offensive to all parties involved if I'm thinking about having the job -- I need to be doing my job," McDaniel said. "So, for as long as I coach for the Miami Dolphins and this organization, they'll get everything from me. And I refuse to spend my time thinking about [my job security]. ... You have a job, you do your job and you do it to the best of your ability.

"That's where my concern lies. I think it's offensive to all coaches, players and the organization if I'm spending that precious time thinking about myself."