Salty Tua has yielded to Skinny Tua, and the transformation of the Dolphins quarterback has been a major talking point at the team’s ongoing mandatory minicamp. Earlier this week, Tua Tagovailoa didn’t share any specifics about how much weight he has lost, or whether he’s trying to lose more. “I don’t know,” he said when asked what he now weighs.
“It’s whatever I’m down to right now.” Why did he do it? “I felt like I’d be better,” Tua said. “I feel better, quicker on my feet, more nimble, all of that.
” He hopes to use that mobility to better extend plays. As to whether he’s planning to lose even more weight, Tua said, “You’ll see during training camp, we’ll see.” On Wednesday, coach Mike McDaniel addressed Tua’s significant body shrinkage.
Honestly, it’s just Tua trying to find another level of his game and another level of being a professional,” McDaniel said. “It happens to a lot of players where all of a sudden you become pseudo-dieticians several years into your career but definitely not at the start. Seeing ways that he could maintain the strength but create some more flexibility and power, or however you want to look at it.
. . .
It wasn’t to correct something that needed fixed. It was an opportunity to get better, in his mind I think. And ultimately, we’ll see how he does at read option and if he’s trying to be an option quarterback, how svelte is svelte? But anything that helps you attack your job and solve problem.
