Some things run deeper than NFL divisional rivalries — even between the Miami Dolphins and the New York Jets. The Jets and Dolphins usually go together like cats and dogs; even amid the downturn of both franchises over the course of the past decade. But when asked about his former teammate Tua Tagovailoa of the Miami Dolphins on ‘The Zach Gelb Show’ last week, Jets defensive tackle Quinnen Williams offered his quarterback plenty of love nonetheless.
“I think (Tagovailoa will) be an amazing quarterback, man. He’s an amazing leader. Great arm, great player, great leader, just a great teammate in general, man, and I just think, just like me, some guys need more time than other guys to become that player that everybody know they can be in the NFL,” said Williams.
“He probably struggled a little bit his first year, man, but I’m pretty sure he’s not going to struggle his second year just due to the learning and experience that he had getting a chance to be on the field his first year, and the things he did wrong his first year he won’t let hisself do wrong again his second year. It’s just how we built at Alabama.”
Williams and Tagovailoa overlapped for the 2017 & 2018 seasons in Tuscaloosa and won a National Championship together in early 2018 after defeating the Georgia Bulldogs in the College Football Playoff. So Williams has seen the best Tagovailoa can offer. And, to be fair, the Dolphins saw the best that Williams can offer with his play in 2020 against Miami. Williams was an absolute terror in both games against the Dolphins, winning gaps up front with quickness and power alike. Williams tagged the Dolphins for 1.5 sacks in their second matchup of the season, a 20-3 Dolphins victory with Ryan Fitzpatrick at the helm amid a thumb injury to Tagovailoa.
The next time the two teams cross paths figures to be the first time Williams and Tagovailoa will line up as starters against one another in the NFL — and here’s hoping Tagovailoa can prove his former college teammate right to help Miami stay comfortably ahead of the New York Jets in the standings.