TUA TAGOVAILOA

Georgia coach Kirby Smart got an inside look at what it takes to build a college football juggernaut working for Nick Saban at Alabama for eight years.

Ryan Tannehill threw two touchdown passes as the Tennessee Titans clinched their second straight AFC South title Sunday, snapping the Miami Dolphins’ seven-game winning streak with a 34-3 win.

Alabama has a chance to repeat.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko play ice hockey after holding diplomatic talks. Both presidents played on the same team - Putin scoring 7 goals and Lukashenko 2, with the leaders coasting home in an 18:7 drubbing.

Tua Tagovailoa threw a pair of short touchdown passes and the Miami Dolphins extended their winning streak to five games by topping the New York Giants 20-9 on Sunday.

Xavien Howard forced a fumble and returned it 49 yards for a touchdown, Tua Tagovailoa came off the bench and capped his night with a 1-yard sneak for a score with 2:19 left and the Miami Dolphins stunned the Baltimore Ravens 22-10 on Thursday night.

Tua Tagovailoa, Jalen Hurts emotional talking about Henry Ruggs III accident which resulted in the death of a 23 year old female and her dog.

Miami coach Brian Flores says Tua Tagovailoa is “our quarterback," reiterating his standard line amid trade speculation.

Tua Tagovailoa will start but the Miami Dolphins will be without starting cornerbacks Xavien Howard and Byron Jones for Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in London.

Brian Flores is reasonably certain of this much: None of his players will be smoking cigarettes inside the Miami Dolphins locker room at halftime on Sunday. Sunday’s Dolphins game against the Jacksonville Jaguars will be the third time that Flores coaches an NFL game in London; he was on the New England staffs that won blowouts at Wembley Stadium in 2009 and 2012. Flores served one game as defensive coordinator for the Napoli Briganti, an Italian club team.

Georgia finds itself in a most unusual position.

Tua Tagovailoa has fractured ribs and won't play Sunday when the Miami Dolphins visit the Las Vegas Raiders.

It was a rough day for NFL quarterbacks.

Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was carted off the sideline during the first quarter of Sunday’s game against Buffalo with a rib injury.

For the 2021 season, these are the starting quarterbacks, listed from worst to best. Jalen Hurts (Eagles)The Eagles have made it clear that they want Jalen Hurts as their starting quarterback. A duel threat, it’s still unknown if he’ll be the starting quarterback for the Eagles in the long term. Teddy Bridgewater (Broncos)Bridgewater is playing as the team’s starting quarterback this season, replacing former rookie Drew Lock after a lackluster season. His strong arm and analytical mind allowed him to stand up to some of the truly great quarterbacks, such as Tom Brady, Drew Brees.

New quarterbacks are leading last year's College Football Playoff teams.

The Miami Dolphins’ starting offense didn’t get in the end zone in their preseason-opener Saturday despite having the football inside the Chicago Bears 10 yard line on one occasion and inside the 20 on another.

Tua Tagovailoa threw five interceptions in practice as the Miami Dolphins opened mandatory minicamp.

Six NFL teams used the draft to reunite college teammates.

Alabama's six first-round selections tied it with the 2004 Miami Hurricanes for most from the same school picked in the first round of an NFL draft.

Following the highest-scoring season in league history, the NFL draft proved its clubs are more committed than ever to keep lighting up the scoreboard.

The recruiting class that Alabama finalized Wednesday has the highest rating in the history of the 247Sports Composite team rankings, which go back to 2010. Steve Wilfong, the director of recruiting for 247Sports, notes this celebrated Alabama class arrives as most of the Tide’s decorated 2017 class departs. Ad“You’re replacing one of the best recruiting classes ever for what they accomplished with maybe the best recruiting class on paper coming in,” Wiltfong said. While plenty of SEC teams joined Alabama in signing impressive classes, Ohio State stood out from its Big Ten foes. All three were quarterbacks, with Bryce Young enrolling at Alabama, DJ Uiagalelei selecting Clemson and CJ Stroud selecting Ohio State.

The next game he plays is for his NFL draft stock, provided the Alabama quarterback’s gimpy left ankle is good to go. Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy said the plan is for Jones to dress out and see how his ankle feels. “Just being in that room, I already learned so much about NFL football,” he said. Mond started 44 games for the Aggies, Ehlinger logged 43 starts for the Longhorns,Mond led the Aggies into College Football Playoffs contention in his final season. I just wanted to come and kind of learn more about NFL football and learn a new playbook, which I thought I did a good job with.

DeVonta Smith was uncoverable, Najee Harris unstoppable and Mac Jones impeccable as the top-ranked Tide won the College Football Playoff national championship game 52-24 against No. 7 overall, breaking a tie with Alabama great Paul “Bear” Bryant for the most by a major college coach. "To me this is the ultimate team,” Saban said. “To me this team accomplished more than almost any team," Saban said. “Heaven knows what he would have done if he played the whole game,” Saban said.

Smith became the first wide receiver to win the Heisman Trophy in 29 seasons Tuesday night, breaking the monopoly quarterbacks have had on the award by beating out three of them. “Just to be one of the very few that played receiver to win the Heisman, it means a lot to me,” Smith said. Smith is the third Alabama player to win the Heisman, all since 2009. 1 receiver, Smith shined. ___Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at https://westwoodonepodcasts.com/pods/ap-top-25-college-football-podcast/___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick (14) warms up before an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sunday, Dec. 6, 2020, in Miami Gardens, Fla. The Miami Dolphins need a good game Sunday to ensure they get to keep playing, and that's especially true for Tua Tagovailoa. Coach Brian Flores has benched Tagovailoa twice in the fourth quarter, including last week at Las Vegas, when backup quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick helped Miami overcome a pair of deficits in the final 10 minutes. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)MIAMI – Miami Dolphins backup quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick tested positive for COVID-19 and is expected to miss Sunday’s regular-season finale at Buffalo. We all love Ryan, but we've got a job to do.”Flores earlier designated Tagovailoa as this week’s starter.

during the second half of an NFL football game, Saturday, Dec. 26, 2020, in Las Vegas. Fitzpatrick's desperation heave to Mack Hollins set up Jason Sanders’ 44-yard field goal as the Dolphins drove the field in the final 19 seconds to move one step closer to a playoff berth with an improbable 26-25 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday night. The move to play for the field goal backfired as the Raiders lost on a kick instead. My head was getting ripped off.”The penalty moved the ball down to the Las Vegas 26, setting up Sanders’ winning kick. Las Vegas then ran out most of the clock but not enough.

Undrafted rookie Salvon Ahmed and veteran Matt Breida combined for 208 yards rushing Sunday to lead the Dolphins to a 22-12 victory over the Patriots, who were eliminated from postseason contention. This is a big win.”Breida added 86 yards and the Dolphins totaled a season-high 250, the most allowed by New England in seven years. The Patriots (6-8) will finish at .500 or worse for the first time since 2000, the year they drafted Tom Brady. They were shut out in the first half, but mounted a 14-play, 90-yard touchdown drive midway through the second half to take the lead for good. DE John Simon (hamstring) and C David Andrews (calf) were sidelined in the second half.

The Chiefs took a 30-10 lead against Miami and held on for a 33-27 victory. The Chiefs clinched their fifth straight AFC West title with the victory and are the unanimous No. “Is there anybody in the NFC that can beat them?”And the surging Buffalo Bills also moved up two places to No. The Packers, who have clinched the NFC North, will host the Carolina Panthers and the Bills will head to Denver to take on the Broncos. The Saints will try to avoid a two-game skid as they host the Chiefs on Sunday.

The Chargers and Falcons are tied at 17 midway through the fourth quarter. Kenny Moore also starred for the Colts with a spectacular one-handed, diving end-zone interception in the second quarter. Adams didn’t do much other than run the scrambling Darnold to the sideline midway through the second quarter. Seattle took its opening possession and got 19-yard touchdown pass from Russell Wilson to Freddie Swain. Mack also recovered a Duke Johnson fumble in the first quarter and deflected a Watson pass in the second quarter.

Tua Tagovailoa had help from a less-heralded rookie while Justin Herbert struggled against a relentless pass rush, and the surprising Dolphins earned their fifth consecutive victory by beating the Los Angeles Chargers 29-21 Sunday. The Chargers could never catch up after they were hurt by two mistakes in the kicking game that allowed Miami to take a 14-0 lead. “I was disappointed in the special teams and some of the things that went on there. “It changed the momentum.”SPECIALMost lopsided of all was the special teams matchup. Jakeem Grant, the NFL leader in punt return yards, helped the Dolphins’ field position with three runbacks for 57 yards.

As he walked off the field after taking a knee on the final play, Tagovailoa presented the ball to Flores. Flores said Tagovailoa appears to have regained all of his mobility, and might be even shiftier than he was at Alabama. “As a rookie, you don’t know what you don’t know,” Flores said. And while his NFL career is off to a good start, his perspective is different from before the hip injury. “I don’t know if I'll ever be my old self,” he said.

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) throws a pass in the first half of an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington, Texas, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Ron Jenkins)The AFC doesn’t lack for drama or star power even though Tom Brady has taken his talents to Davis Beach. WEST: The Chiefs (8-1) are still the class of the conference despite a hiccup against the resurgent Raiders (5-3), who won 40-32 at Arrowhead Stadium on Oct. 11. Mahomes became the fastest quarterback in NFL history to reach 100 TD passes, doing it in 40 games, four fewer than Dan Marino. The Broncos (3-5) have been waylaid by injuries and COVID-19 opt-outs, exposures and infections and Drew Lock went 45 drives without a TD pass.

The 22-year-old Tagovailoa threw for 248 yards and two touchdowns in just his second NFL start as the Miami Dolphins rallied in the fourth quarter for a 34-31 victory over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. “Tua did his part," Miami coach Brian Flores said. BIG FOOTSanders made a 56-yard field goal as time expired in the second quarter to give the Dolphins a 24-17 halftime lead. We’re trying to do everything we can.”INJURIESDolphins: WR Preston Williams (foot) left the game in the second quarter and didn't return. Cardinals: CB Kevin Peterson left the game early in the second quarter for a concussion evaluation and didn't return.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) and quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick (14) embrace after Tagovailoa throws his first touchdown pass during an NFL game against the Los Angeles Rams, Sunday, Nov. 1, 2020 in Miami Gardens, Fla. (Margaret Bowles via AP)When the Dolphins leave the oceanfront and head to the desert to play the Cardinals on Sunday, it will be about more than Tua vs. Kyler. Tua Tagovailoa, as touted as any signal caller coming out of college in years, will make his second start for Miami. Henry has eight rushing touchdowns, finding the end zone in five straight games. The Patriots will try to avoid losing five straight games for the first time since 1995.

He entertained those along the bench by dancing after the Miami Dolphins' first touchdown, and greeted 5-foot-6 Jakeem Grant with a leaping chest bump to the face mask after another score. The early 33-yard scoring drive was the Dolphins' longest, as the big lead allowed them to keep Tagovailoa mostly under wraps. We tried to make him see a lot of different things, and for the most part it worked.”The Rams' defense received little support from their offense, though. “We heard a lot about the Rams' defense," Miami safety Eric Rowe said, “but they had to worry about our defense.”INJURIESTwo-time Rams Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey became ill before the game and didn’t play. ANTHEMFifteen Rams players knelt during “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The Dolphins stayed in the locker room during the national anthem.

Dalvin Cook scored four times for the Minnesota Vikings, who held on for a 28-22 victory over the Green Bay Packers. Cook has scored six touchdowns in two games against Green Bay this season. Green Bay now has made it seven in a row. The Vikings and Green Bay Packers are tied 7-all in the final minute of the first quarter. This is shaping up to be a windy day in Green Bay.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) celebrates his first NFL play with Miami Dolphins running back Matt Breida (22), Miami Dolphins guard Ted Karras (67) and Miami Dolphins running back Lynn Bowden (15) against the New York Jets during an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2020, in Miami Gardens, Fla. Tagovailoas winning personality helped the Miami Dolphins avoid locker room backlash when he was promoted to replace popular veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick. (AP Photo/Doug Murray)MIAMI – Tua Tagovailoa’s winning personality helped the Miami Dolphins avoid any locker room backlash when he was promoted to replace popular veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick. Even so, players who have spoken publicly regarding the change say they're excited about Tagovailoa becoming the starter. Under Tagovailoa, the Dolphins hope their offense will be even more dynamic. “Just like everybody else, I'm excited to see him in his first start.”___More AP NFL: https://apnews.com/NFL and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL___Follow Steven Wine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Steve_Wine

Miami Dolphins quarterbacks Ryan Fitzpatrick (14) and Tua Tagovailoa (1) warm up before an NFL football game against the New England Patriots, Sunday, Sept. 13, 2020, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)MIAMI – The Miami Dolphins' transition to Tua Tagovailoa didn’t start the way coach Brian Flores intended, and deposed quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick said the surprising timing left him heartbroken. “If he says Tua is the man to lead us, we’re going to go with it.”Fitzpatrick, in his second season with his eighth NFL team, has been characteristically inconsistent this year. He has made an impact on Tua and a lot of other players on this team. The cancellation of offseason drills and exhibition games because of the coronavirus slowed his NFL development, and two weeks ago, Flores said Tagovailoa wasn't ready to start.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) looks to pass during the second half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2020, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)MIAMI – Tua Tagovailoa now has a role to match his jersey number. He’s the Miami Dolphins’ No. At Alabama, Tagovailoa wore Marino's No. Tagovailoa went 2 for 2 for 9 yards against the Jets. At Alabama, Tagovailoa threw 76 touchdown passes in 24 starts over his final two seasons.

The Jets (0-6) became the NFL's only winless team and continued their worst start since 1996, increasing the heat on embattled coach Adam Gase. The Dolphins blanked the Jets for the first time since the January 1983 AFC championship game, which they won 14-0. The two teams were a combined 0 for 19 on third downs before the Jets finally converted with 11 minutes left. The Dolphins' only third-down conversion came on a completion by Tagovailoa, who went 2 for 2 for 9 yards. ANTHEMRunning back Ty Jackson was the only player kneeling for the Jets during “The Star-Spangled Banner.”The Dolphins stayed in the locker room.

Brady hit Rob Gronkowski for a 12-yard touchdown with 1:02 left in the second quarter to cap the rally. Mayfield threw a pick-six to Minkah Fitzpatrick in the first quarter and another pick in the second quarter set up a Pittsburgh touchdown. The Steelers lost inside linebacker Devin Bush to a left knee injury in the second quarter. ___2:20 p.m.Andrew Thomas is back at left tackle for the New York Giants to start the second quarter. The winless Giants have a 13-10 lead over Washington late in the second quarter.

Briefly threatened early, Jones and the Crimson Tide (2-0) flexed their considerable big-play muscle in the passing game to put away the Aggies (1-1). “Our guys stayed the course and kept competing in the game,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said. “We won, so it's a good game,” Jones said, when asked if it was his best performance. Smith, a converted receiver, emerged as another needed threat in the passing game. Alabama: Any questions about production of the Tide's passing game after Tua Tagovailoa, Jerry Jeudy and Henry Ruggs III have been answered.

MIAMI NFL cutdown day forced the Miami Dolphins to acknowledge the failure of their Josh Rosen experiment. Miami released Rosen, who was acquired from Arizona in April 2019 for second- and fifth-round draft picks. You dont hit on every play, on every trade, on every draft pick. I'll applaud that team.The decision to cut Rosen signals the Dolphins are confident in the health of top draft pick Tagovailoa, who has returned from a career-threatening hip injury that ended his Alabama career in November. Rosen began last season as Miamis backup QB, replaced Fitzpatrick as the starter in Games 3 through 5, and spent the rest of the year in the No.

3 Crimson Tide received that programs equivalent of a humbling last season, if an 11-2 record can qualify as such. Alabama failed to make the College Football Playoffs for the first time thanks largely to a 48-45, regular season-ending loss to rival Auburn. Making matters worse, that followed a 2018 season that ended with national championship game thrashing at the hands of Clemson. Speculation abounded that highly recruited freshman Bryce Young might push Jones for the starting job before COVID-19 canceled spring practice. Harris emerged as Alabamas latest star runner last season, gaining 1,224 yards and scoring 20 combined touchdowns rushing and receiving.