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Tua Tagovailoa could break Drew Brees’ completion percentage record. Here’s why he doesn’t care

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) sets up to pass in the second half of their NFL game against the New York Jets at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla

Tua Tagovailoa is in the midst of a historic season.

With a career-high 73.8 completion percentage, the Miami Dolphins quarterback has a legitimate shot at eclipsing Drew Brees’ record of 74.44. That, however, doesn’t matter to Tagovailoa.

“To surpass any record in the NFL is an accomplishment in itself,” Tagovailoa said Wednesday, later adding “for us right now, just trying to keep the main goal, the main goal and to find a win this Sunday and go on a run that we’ve been talking about in that locker room as a team, that would be a little more special than any other record.”

Tagovailoa’s team-first mentality is nothing new. The idea that not even breaking Brees’ record holds wait in Tagovailoa’s mind shows the utmost selflessness.

“In the the National Football League, there’s a lot of distractions,” coach Mike McDaniel said. The best pros are able “to focus on your job and how it relates to all of your teammates.”

Added McDaniel: “That’s what he’s really, really doing a great job of right now. He could care less about completion percentage or 300-yard games or whatever. He’s trying to make sure that he’s doing the right ball handling on run plays as well as moving everybody in and out of the huddle and lead the offense and this team.”

Tagovailoa’s complete focus has set the tone for the locker room. For weeks, the Dolphins have approached each game as one with playoff implications; the hole that they dug themselves in was just too deep to have any other mind-set. Still, Tagovailoa’s leadership has clearly influenced even the way that his teammates even discuss the quarterback.

“Tua has been our leader,” offensive lineman Robert Jones said. “He brings the energy. He makes sure everybody is focused on the main thing. He keeps the main thing, the main thing and doesn’t get too much into everything else.”

Part of the reason that Tagovailoa might not put too much stock into the record is that his 2024 playing style has been a departure from that of 2023 when he led the league in passing. Gone are the deep balls to Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle that had the former on pace for 2,000 yards receiving toward the beginning of last season. Instead, the Dolphins quarterback has been forced to rely on shorter routes to move the ball down the field, which appears to be the only thing that concerns Tagovailoa.

“The success that we’ve found offensively being able to distribute the ball to different guys has allowed us to find success in the short game and then in the mid passing game,” Tagovailoa said, explaining that his mind-set has been “just find a completion wherever it may be.”

“With all the statistics and what not, all we’re trying to do is stay on the field,” he continued. “Find ways to elongate our drive so that we can find ways to go down and put the ball in the end zone.”

That, in a sense, is leadership at its finest. Despite the records, despite Tagovailoa’s otherworldly efficiency, despite not being solely responsible for the Dolphins’ sub-.500 record, the quarterback only wants one thing: to win. In fact, Tagovailoa himself recently took responsibility for the team’s record. And regardless of whether that’s true, you have to respect a guy who’s willing to accept not just the good parts of being a franchise quarterback but the bad as well.

“What’s changed is playing the position and how, for me, Tua represents the epitome of accountability and security in one’s skin,” McDaniel said. “So often, one of the bigger challenges in this profession — coaching, playing, whatever — is you have arrows coming at you left and right and it is human nature to be like, ‘Listen, I’m good. This is not my fault,’ and that’s not him. He’s attacked his game in a relentless fashion, and I think the greatest example is I’ve talked to him a ton today and zero has been about any feat, anything that’s happened literally last week. We watched film on Monday and talked about his game-winning touchdown but turned the page, firmly Texans.”