Tua Tagovailoa's play has significantly improved with the help of new Dolphins TE

Despite the Miami Dolphins' 1-4 record, a positive takeaway as of late has been the improved play of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.

It was a brutal, turnover filled start to Tagovailoa's 2025 season, including four interceptions in the first three games. But in Weeks 4 and 5, Tagovailoa didn't turn the ball over a single time against the Jets and Panthers. He instead threw five touchdowns between those two games. It was a three-touchdown performance against the Panthers where he tallied 256 yards with a 122.0 passer rating and a team-best 90.5 grade from PFF.

Tagovailoa is currently tied for third in the NFL with 10 passing touchdowns, a mark shared with Lamar Jackson, Dak Prescott, and Baker Mayfield.

So what changed for Tagovailoa? The emergence of tight end Darren Waller has certainly helped. Waller made an immediate impact by scoring two touchdowns in his Week 4 debut, the Dolphins' first and only win of the year.

Waller followed up this impressive performance in Week 5 against the Panthers, catching all five of his targets for 78 yards and a touchdown.

“It’s been cool just because of (Waller's) story," Tagovailoa said Wednesday. "Like he hadn’t been playing last year, then he comes in, his first game he gets two touchdowns, Next game he catches a good amount of balls and then he ends up having another touchdown.

"It’s like you couldn’t even write this up in a way, but I think for a guy of his caliber, in a way for me, makes it a little easier when it comes to the size that he has. I can see him – it’s kind of like I am able to adjust that way whereas, OK, I know this guy is here, but I know he’s going to be there. So I’ve got to trust that when I throw this ball, he’s going to be there, and then that’s where you kind of fine-tune things with timing with certain guys.”

The next step for the Dolphins' offense is to keep putting points on the board throughout the entirety of a game. All of Waller's five receptions against Carolina came in the first half. He wasn't even targeted in the second half, as the Panthers gradually dug out of a 17-point hole. As Waller's impact vanished, so too did the production of the Dolphins offense, which managed just one scoring drive in the second half.

It's obvious that Waller's involvement is a key factor to the Dolphins success, especially after the season ending knee injury to star wide receiver Tyreek Hill. The newfound chemistry between Tagovailoa and Waller will need to be emphasized this Sunday if the Dolphins have any hope of defeating the 3-2 Los Angeles Chargers.

This article originally appeared on Dolphins Wire: Dolphins' Tua Tagovailoa has improved with the help of Darren Waller