Originally posted by jonnydel:
Tua Tagovailoa has thrown 38 completions targeting the intermediate middle third of the field this season, 16 more than any other QB.
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) December 1, 2022
In 2021 under OC Mike McDaniel, Jimmy Garoppolo led the NFL with 45 completions targeting the same area of the field.#MIAvsSF | #FinsUp pic.twitter.com/ws52QeNEgW
The intermediate middle third has been the most valuable area to target in the passing game...
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) December 1, 2022
Since 2016, passes thrown between 10 & 19 air yards targeting a receiver in the middle third generate the most EPA per play (+0.45) of any region on the field.#StatThat
Weird, if only someone said they saw this on film for years......but i guess it couldn't have been accurate, they're, "biased"
???
Tua's had to face the same type of criticism regarding passing over the top, deep, outside, etc. before this offense came to Miami.
That's the good news.
The not-so-good news is it was Tua's first touchdown pass beyond 20 yards this season.
By comparison, and everyone loves comparisons, Joe Burrow has 11 touchdown passes of 20+ yards this season and Justin Herbert has six.
"I was happy for (Tua) but at the end of the day, you don't want to force a deep ball that's not there to try to give people something to write about or people to be happy about," Miami tight end Mike Gesicki said this week. "You've got to play within the game plan and play within what the defense gives you."
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Ultimately, though, the fate of the Dolphins' revamped offense comes down to the performance of Tagovailoa, which still depends on what he can do with his arm. The video -- yes, that video -- posted by the team showing Tagovailoa throw a pass to Hill during spring workouts didn't exactly help quiet the narrative surrounding Tagovailoa's arm, but as Smith said Wednesday, Miami's offense will be about much more than throwing deep balls to Hill.
"Oh, physically he's been fine," Smith said of Tagovailoa. "I mean, one unique thing with him is his ability to play with fundamentals and accuracy with the ball. This time of year we're working the whole route tree, all different concepts and all the things necessary for the wide receivers and for him and the running backs. So the one thing is is his ability to on-the-field process and deliver the football where we need it to go."
This is not exactly a guy regarded as Patrick Mahomes before McDaniel showed up to SoBe.
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Nothing about how "this is just how the offense is and Tua will have to adjust." We do the exact same thing with Jimmy G and tailor it to his strengths. So what?