‘Pick a guy and let it fly': Tua Tagovailoa shares wisdom of philosopher Dan Marino, 60

MIAMI GARDENS — On a landmark day in Dolphins history Wednesday, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa shared a piece of inspiration he received from a poet:

“Pick a guy and let it fly.”

Credit Dan Marino with that one. No, Marino will never be confused with Robert Frost or Amanda Gorman. But just as neither Frost nor Gorman will have a bust in Canton, they’ll also never have Tagovailoa’s ear when it comes to sharing wisdom about playing quarterback. Marino will, and does, regularly, Tagovailoa said on the day Marino turned (hold on, folks) 60.

“I think Dan’s done a great job being in our meetings,” Tagovailoa said. “You know, he has a lot of input in our meetings. Happy birthday to Dan.”

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Officially, the Dolphins list Marino as a “special advisor to the vice chairman, president and CEO” of the organization, Tom Garfinkel. Marino is regularly seen at practice, travels for road games and has expertise no one else in the building can offer Tagovailoa and Jacoby Brissett.

“He helps us with things that we don’t see or we never thought of seeing,” Tagovailoa said. “But yeah, I think it’s really good to hear it from his perspective, someone who’s played the position.”

One of the first rules of playing quarterback is to never overlook the guys who protect your body, so when it was pointed out to Tagovailoa that Marino was reaching a milestone Wednesday, Tagovailoa offered a correction of sorts.

“And don’t forget Jesse, too — Jesse Davis. It’s Jesse Davis’ birthday, too, guys,” Tagovailoa said of his blindside protector at right tackle, who turned 30.

Confident Fitz will bounce back

The quarterback fraternity being what it is, it’s no surprise that Tagovailoa said he has spoken with his former mentor on the Dolphins, Ryan Fitzpatrick, who suffered a hip injury Sunday that is expected to keep him out in Washington for perhaps two months. Thus created a role reversal in which Tagovailoa gave Fitzpatrick advice. Tagovailoa suffered a serious hip injury that ended his collegiate career.

“Fitz is going through what he’s going through,” Tagovailoa said. “Wished him the best. I think this is something that he’ll get through, knowing the kind of person that Fitz is.”

Tagovailoa is looking forward to Sunday’s game against the Buffalo Bills, which will mark the first time he’ll have his three starting receivers. Will Fuller has been activated after serving out the final game of his NFL suspension last week during the victory over New England.

Although Tagovailoa said it’s “fun” to have Fuller in the fold, he added, “Really, it’s still things that we need to work with Will on with me and his timing. That’s what special teams (practice) is for. When special teams is out there, I’m pulling him to the side, I’m throwing routes to him.”

A voice in the game plan

The New England game was a contrast for the offense. On the first drive of each half, the Dolphins clicked, driving 80 and 75 yards for touchdowns. They were aided by going uptempo, which Tagovailoa seems to be comfortable operating. Tagovailoa said he has input in how often to use it.

“We go into these games having a game plan, and it’s a mutual game plan where there’s a lot of open communication” that includes speaking with coaches Charlie Frye, George Godsey, Eric Studesville and Brian Flores. “We kind of talk through that pretty much starting today and throughout the whole week. It’s not set until, really, the day of the game.”

The Dolphins enter the Bills game 1-0 and with a chance to take a two-game early lead over the favorites in the AFC East. Miami beat New England 17-16 after surviving a late interception by Tagovailoa that drew criticism from members of the Patriots’ secondary who said Tagovailoa “panics” when pressured while going through his progressions.

“I’d say I feel good” about his ability to go through progressions, Tagovailoa said. “But obviously it’s a continued process for me. It’s a continued process for all of us to continue to learn.”

To learn how to pick a guy, then let it fly.