Tua Tagovailoa: I think there is a culture shift

At points this offseason, there has been talk of a culture shift with Miami.

The club has gone 28-23 with two one-and-done postseason appearances under head coach Mike McDaniel over the last three seasons. But last year, the Dolphins slipped under .500, finishing the year 8-9.

Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who is entering his sixth pro season, told reporters in his Tuesday press conference that he’s noticed the vibe shift.

“I think there is a culture shift,” Tagovailoa said, via transcript from the team, agreeing with fullback Alec Ingold that chemistry and work ethic have improved from 2024. “I feel it just as much as everyone that’s been here since I’ve gotten into the league. We always hear about, ‘Man, culture shift. You guys have a change of this. You guys are doing this, always optimistic.’ But I really do feel in my heart that this is a change of scenery for our guys in the locker room, and then it also transitions to our coaches as well, because we get opportunities to lead and it’s not as much the coaches as it is the players I would say this year.

“For me, I think what’s most important is I’ve been here for five years going on six,” Tagovailoa later added. “Are you not tired of what we’ve done these past five years? If you are, then why aren’t we doing anything about it? What do we have to change? What do we have to do to correct the navigation of where we want to go? I would say that’s what it is. You create that standard in the locker room, the guys follow and you’ve got to uphold it. So you come into work knowing that they are looking to you to uphold that standard and if you don’t, you’ve got to have brought enough guys to hold you to that standard as well.”

Tagovailoa noted that he’s seen some of that manifest itself in offseason practices being more even than just offensively driven. But also, the team is establishing good chemistry on and off the field.

“I wouldn’t say anyone has inspired me on this team, I would say we’ve grown pretty close collectively as a group. Hanging out a lot more, literally hanging out a lot,” Tagovailoa said. “My wife gets mad because we’re hanging out. No kidding, we hang out so much, it’s like you don’t see enough of them at the facility? It’s just a different deal, right? You’re at work and when you get time to relax, that’s just a different type of conversation that you get to have with the guys.

“I would say just the camaraderie with the guys has been really good.”

We’ll see in the fall if the culture shift translates into wins.