The Miami Dolphins need to see better play from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, but that goes for everyone else on the team too, says head coach Mike McDaniel.

In a 33-8 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, Tagovailoa threw two interceptions and fumbled away another possession. He finished with just 114 passing yards, his lowest total in a start since he exited a September 2022 game in the first half. McDaniel said the rust that comes with Week 1 was probably part of the issue.

“I saw quarterback play that was less than to be desired which Tua absolutely knows,” McDaniel said Wednesday. “But he’s the captain and the franchise quarterback and everybody kind of fell victim to something similar. I also know that he’s very, very much like most quarterbacks, to be honest, where you’re putting a lot of work into something and your first time doing it for a collective four quarters in months, you’re not at your best.”

Former Dolphins cornerback Xavien Howard, who joined the Colts in August and recovered a Tagovailoa fumble on Sunday, told reporters earlier this week that it’s easy to get the Miami quarterback in “panic mode” by taking away his first read. On Thursday, offensive coordinator Frank Smith came to Tagovailoa’s defense, although he didn’t disagree that it was a problem in Week 1.

“I don’t think that’s really true because when you look at several games from last year where he had to move through his progressions, he was very effective,” Smith said. “I just think when you really assess his performances over time it’s not necessarily true. Might have been true in that moment, but I don’t think that’s necessarily true overall for him.”

Whatever the issue, McDaniel’s hope is that Tagovailoa takes lessons from the loss and turns the page.

“My biggest thing is I don’t want to make the same mistakes twice,” McDaniel said Wednesday. “I don’t want to have things happen for no reason or in vain. You make them purposeful by improving upon the things that you failed at and then making sure that your teammates do the same. … He and everybody else needs to be better for us to get done what we want to get done.”

The Dolphins will try to right the ship in Week 2 with a home matchup against the New England Patriots. Tagovailoa sat out one of Miami’s two wins against the Patriots in 2024 and finished the other with 317 yards, four touchdowns, and no interceptions.

This article originally appeared on Dolphins Wire: Dolphins’ Mike McDaniel says Tua Tagovailoa ‘needs to be better’