1 of 5 | Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa speaks at a news conference Wednesday in Miami Gardens, Fla. Photo by Alex Butler/UPI
More evidence will be provided for the Tua Tagovaila-Justin Herbert 2020 NFL Draft debate Sunday, when the Miami Dolphins host the Los Angeles Chargers.
Tagovailoa and Herbert will be forever linked after the Dolphins opted to pick Tagovailoa at No. 5 overall in 2025 instead of Herbert, who went No. 6 to the Chargers. Many consider Herbert the superior physical talent, while he also managed to stay healthier through his first six seasons.
But Tagovailoa has a 2-1 record against Herbert’s Chargers and has a chance to earn more ground in the fan-fueled rivalry. Despite fans’ constant reminders of that draft-day decision, Tagovailoa said he only hopes Herbert keeps playing for many years.
“I think he’s done a great job,” Tagovailoa said. “He’s done a phenomenal job within his career this far. I hope he has a long career.
“I know everyone wants to do the comparisons with all the dudes who were in my draft class, but all you can do is be happy for the guys, where they’re at in their life of football, and wish the best for them. That’s all I would want to do and hope the same in return.”
Joe Burrow, the No. 1 overall pick, Jordan Love (No. 26) and Jalen Hurts (No. 53) were among the other quarterbacks selected early on in 2020, but they each have recorded playoff victories — unlike Herbert and Tagovailoa.
Hurts and Burrow reached Super Bowls, with the former earning the NFL’s most recent crown. Love has a 1-2 playoff mark after leading the Green Bay Packers to the postseason in each of his first two full seasons as a starter.
Herbert and Tagovailoa, both of whom have seen coaching changes and offensive system facelifts, still are searching for playoff success. Herbert is 0-2 in the postseason; Tagovailoa is 0-1.
All of the quarterbacks from that 2020 class have earned lucrative second contracts, including Tagovailoa’s four-year, $212.4 million pact and Herbert’s five-year, $262 million deal.
Herbert leads Tagovailoa in many notable passing statistics, including yards (22,322 versus 16,514), touchdown passes (145 versus 110) and wins (44 versus 39).
But Tagovailoa has a better completion percentage (68.3% versus 66.4%), winning percentage (58.2% versus 52.3%) and quarterback rating (98.1 versus. 96.4).
Herbert also played nearly a full-season’s worth of games more than Tagovailoa, due to the Dolphins’ quarterback’s injury history. Both are one-time Pro Bowl selections.
Despite links to the class, which most likely will be discussed for his entire career, Tagovailoa remains focused on his role with the Dolphins and said he doesn’t keep in touch with the other quarterbacks from 2020.
Herbert and Tagovailoa both have said they don’t maintain a personal relationship.
“I would say I haven’t really had too much communication with a lot of the guys in my draft class,” Tagovailoa said. “Everyone is in a different stage in their lives. Some are married, some aren’t married. Maybe some dating supermodels, some not.”
Like many fans, Tagovailoa previously touted Herbert for his arm strength and ability to throw on the run. He also said he previously found himself “fanning over” some of his deep throws. Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel also praised Herbert for his strength and athletic ability earlier this week.
“I think his ability to extend plays and … make a defense cover the entire field,” McDaniel said. “He can put the ball across the field 50 yards on the other hash, so when he’s using his athletic ability, he stresses your plaster and your connectivity to eligibles down the field.
“That threat of arm and legs, I think he’s a competitor, I think he keeps getting better,” and he’s someone who makes the opposing team try to minimizing his production,” McDaniel said.
In their head-to-head meetings, Tagovailoa holds a 6 to 4 advantage over Herbert in touchdown tosses, but trails in completion percentage (54.1% versus 70.7%) and yards (780 versus 783). Herbert also found the end zone twice with his legs, while Tagovailoa didn’t log a rushing score in their first three meetings.
Tagovailoa completed 70.7% of his throws for 1,008 yards, 10 scores and four interceptions through his first five starts this season, when the Dolphins went 1-4. Herbert completed 65.7% of his throws for 1,229 yards, eight scores and four interceptions for the 3-2 Chargers.
The 2025 Dolphins have the No. 29 offense in the NFL, with the league’s third-worst rushing attack. They rank 21st in passing yards. Herbert’s Chargers have the No. 12 offense in the NFL, including the No. 10 pass offense and No. 14 rushing offense.
The Dolphins and Chargers will kick off at 1 p.m. EDT Sunday in Miami Gardens, Fla. The Chargers are 3.5-point favorites.
“I think the only perspective you have is what you can do to help your team win every week,” Tagovailoa said. “I can’t go and look at what these other quarterbacks are doing and focus on what I need to do for that week to get the job done in order to help our team win.
“I wouldn’t say it’s a necessity of me needing to watch these other quarterbacks and see where do I stand, did I have a better game, did I have a worse game. The way teams prepare for those quarterbacks versus how we’re preparing for a certain defense is all going to be different.
“I wouldn’t say I categorize myself as if I played well [or] to see how I stacked up against this person or not. That’s not how I go about it. I’ve got to do my job, and my job is to play well enough to help my team win games.”
