Tua Tagovailoa is not playing in the Miami Dolphins' Week 17 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as he has been designated the team's emergency third quarterback.
As the emergency third-string quarterback, Tagovailoa will dress for the game but will only enter if both Ewers and Wilson are unable to play.
The Dolphins have already been eliminated from playoff contention.
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Why was Tua Tagovailoa benched?
Head coach Mike McDaniel officially benched Tagovailoa ahead of Week 16 against the Cincinnati Bengals, turning to rookie seventh-round pick Quinn Ewers as the starter, with Zach Wilson serving as the backup.
The decision followed Miami's loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, a defeat that dropped the Dolphins to 6–8 and eliminated them from postseason contention.
Tagovailoa struggled in that game, prompting McDaniel to consider a change at quarterback.
“Naturally I’d say I’m disappointed,” Tagovailoa said. “I think it’s normal. It’s a normal human emotion. But outside of that, I’ve got to do my part. My role here right now is to help whoever the quarterback is going to be for this team.”
{{/usCountry}}“Naturally I’d say I’m disappointed,” Tagovailoa said. “I think it’s normal. It’s a normal human emotion. But outside of that, I’ve got to do my part. My role here right now is to help whoever the quarterback is going to be for this team.”
{{/usCountry}}After the Steelers loss, McDaniel indicated that changes were possible.
"The quarterback play last night was not good enough," McDaniel said on Dec.16. "So for me, everything is on the table."
The following day, McDaniel announced Ewers would make his first career NFL start against Cincinnati.
"The decision is complicated but simple," McDaniel said. "The simple piece is I think Quinn gives this team the best chance to win. Our focus is obviously to win the next three games, but in particular -- like I told the players -- we are focused on beating the Bengals, so that is the motivation.
"Zach will be backing him up, and Tua will be the emergency third."
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Miami Dolphins Week 17 Inactives
QB Tua Tagovailoa
WR Nick Westbrook-Ikhine
S Minkah Fitzpatrick
OL Aaron Brewer
LB Derrick McLendon
T Kendall Lamm
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Week 17 Inactives
QB Connor Bazelak
LB John Bullock
OLB Anthony Nelson
WR Sterling Shepard
T Tristan Wirfs
S Rashad Wisdom