Colts Defender on Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa: We Made Him Go Into ‘Panic Mode’

Tua Tagovailoa and the Miami Dolphins want to move on to Week 2 – like, immediately.

In Week 1, the Dolphins were blown out on the road by the Indianapolis Colts, 33-8, and a member of the Colts’ secondary knows why.

“We knew the guy, he gets the ball out pretty quick. And once we take away his first read, I feel like it’s panic mode after that,” cornerback Xavien Howard said about Tagovailoa on Monday, according to ESPN. “And it showed yesterday. We took away his first read, and he was trying to get rid of the ball real quick.”

Tagovailoa totaled 114 passing yards, one passing touchdown, two interceptions and a 51.7 passer rating, while completing 60.9% of his passes in the Week 1 loss. He was pulled for Zach Wilson in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, Indianapolis held Miami to just 78 rushing yards and outgained them 418-211 in total yards.

Tagovailoa, who led the NFL with 4,624 passing yards in 2023 and a 105.5 passer rating in 2022, missed six games in 2024 due to head and hip injuries, respectively. In the 11 games he appeared in last season, Tagovailoa completed an NFL-high 72.9% of his passes.

On the other side, quarterback Daniel Jones made his first career start for the Colts after being released by the New York Giants in November of last season and was phenomenal, throwing for 272 yards and one touchdown, while posting a 115.9 passer rating and completing 75.9% of his passes. Jones added 26 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.

Howard, a one-time All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowler, is also in his first season with the Colts. Prior to not playing in 2024, Howard spent the first eight seasons of his NFL career with the Dolphins (2016-23).

“I barely could sleep the night before the game because I was just thinking about, like, how I’m going to feel playing against my former team,” Howard said. “And I went out there, [put] my feelings to the side and kept it about the business, and we took care of business.”

Howard recovered a fumble in the Week 1 win.

The Dolphins have a trio of divisional games on tap, as they host the New England Patriots in Week 2, hit the road to play the Buffalo Bills in Week 3 and host the New York Jets in Week 4.

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