Ryan Fitzpatrick Is Not Happy He Lost His Job to Tua Tagovailoa
Ryan Fitzpatrick opened up about the Miami Dolphins benching him in favor of rookie Tua Tagovailoa and he is definitely not happy about the decision. It's obvious Fitzpatrick didn't know the change was coming and it blindsided him.
During media availability on Wednesday, Fitzpatrick was brutally honest about what happened and how he felt:
Ryan Fitzpatrick is going to speak to the media. His reaction to being benched:
— Armando Salguero (@ArmandoSalguero) October 21, 2020
"I was shocked by it. It definitely caught me off guard. It was a hard thing for me to hear yesterday, just digesting the news. My heart just hurt all day."
Fitz: "There's a lot of stuff going through my mind yesterday...Is this it?"
— Armando Salguero (@ArmandoSalguero) October 21, 2020
"I've been a starter, I've been benched all kinds of different ways ... but this was kind of the first place other than Buffalo that I've been fully committed and invested. I felt it was my team."
Ryan Fitzpatrick: "I basically got fired yesterday and my day today consisted of zoom meetings with the guy who fired me and sitting in a room with the guy who replaced me for four hours."
— Armando Salguero (@ArmandoSalguero) October 21, 2020
Ryan Fitzpatrick says he has "no idea" about next season. Says he doesn't "go in there and ask or demanding anything" speaking of idea of requesting a trade.
— Armando Salguero (@ArmandoSalguero) October 21, 2020
Man, that's really sad. It feels like the Dolphins could have prepared him at the beginning of the season that this might happen considering that seems like it was the plan all along. It sounds like there was no communication until Fitzpatrick was called with the news.
Let's be real, Tagovailoa is the future in Miami and the Dolphins are smart to get him on an NFL field as soon as possible. You don't draft a guy with the fifth overall pick just to let him sit on the bench. They need to see what they have in him, especially with a talented quarterback crop in this upcoming draft. But this is a rough way to handle the business of benching someone.
The tough part is Fitzpatrick is having a pretty outstanding season. He has completed 70.1 percent of his passes for 1,535 yards, with 10 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He's averaged 7.8 yards per attempt, has a passer rating of 95.0 and his QBR of 79.6 ranks seventh in the NFL. The Dolphins are also 3-3 and one game back of the Bills for first place in the AFC East.
It's a shame that the 37-year-old is being benched when he's on a roll. The NFL is a cold business.