Tua Tagovailoa not focusing on Justin Herbert but on Chargers’ defense ahead of the game



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Sunday’s meeting between the Miami Dolphins and the Los Angeles Chargers will be the first clash of the season that sees a pair of 2020 NFL Draft first-round quarterbacks clash.

Tua Tagovailoa will make his third start for Miami while Justin Herbert will get his eighth start for the Chargers. Tagovailoa was the second quarterback selected in this spring’s NFL Draft. Herbert was third as the two went behind Joe Burrow of Cincinnati. Tagovailoa was the fifth overall selection. Herbert was sixth.

But despite the proximity to the draft and the emphasis on being a quarterback, Tagovailoa does not consider Sunday’s game to be a Tagovailoa game against Herbert. He will never be on the field at the same time as his Chargers counterpart.

“I think it’s just something that will have to be dealt with in the media,” Tagovailoa said, via Armando Salguero de la Miami herald. “I have no animosity towards Justin Herbert and for me it’s not even a competition between me and him. It’s a competition for me to come out and see what I can do to help our team succeed against their defense.

“And I’m pretty sure it’s the same with Justin too. But yes, that’s kind of my thinking with all that.

Herbert got off to a flying start for the Chargers even though the victories have yet to manifest. He completes 67% of his passes with 17 touchdowns and just five interceptions in seven starts. Tagovailoa’s sample size is much smaller, but he comes from a promising start with 248 passing yards and two touchdowns against the Arizona Cardinals last week.

Throw in Burrow production for the Bengals and the 2020 quarterback class has had an impressive start to their careers. Whether or not Tagovailoa agrees with the sentiment, Sunday’s meeting will be the first face-to-face barometer for two of the possible stars of the future of this year’s rookie crop.


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