Tua calls out some Fins for meeting attendance

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa said the team has several "little things" to clean up following its 1-5 start, including attendance at player-led meetings.

Shortly after Miami's 29-27 loss Sunday to the Los Angeles Chargers, Tagovailoa was asked how players can refrain from feeling sorry for themselves. The Dolphins have now lost four games this season in which they trailed by one score in the final two minutes.

Tagovailoa, who threw the go-ahead touchdown but also three interceptions, mentioned possible changes to player-led meetings throughout the week.

"I think it starts with the leadership in helping articulate that for the guys and then what we're expecting out of the guys," he said. "We're expecting this -- are we getting that? Are we not getting that? We have guys showing up to player only meetings late, guys not showing up to players-only meetings. There's a lot that goes into that. Do we have to make this mandatory? Do we not have to make this mandatory?

"It's a lot of things of that nature that we've got to get cleaned up, and it starts with little things like that."

The Dolphins had just a 6% chance to win Sunday's game entering the fourth quarter, according to NextGen Stats, as Los Angeles led by 10 points. But Miami scored 14 unanswered points, taking a one-point lead on Tagovailoa's 7-yard pass to Darren Waller with 46 seconds remaining in the game.

The Chargers returned the ensuing kickoff to Miami's 41-yard line, however, and quarterback Justin Herbert connected with Ladd McConkey for a 42-yard gain on second down to set up a game-winning field goal.

Tagovailoa called the loss a "shock" before revealing the team's internal issues with its player-led meetings. He took responsibility for his three turnovers, and shifted his focus to Miami's game in Week 7 against the Cleveland Browns.

"The only place we can go is next week," he said. "We talk about figuring this out. We talk about getting it together collectively. What are the problems, what are the issues and are they getting fixed? Are they not getting fixed? Why are they not getting fixed? Or if they're fixed, how are we not allowing it to happen again? Things of that nature.

"We've got to look at the film again, we've got to see where we can go. I contributed to a lot of that as well with the three turnovers. You can't do that and expect to win games."

Linebacker Jordyn Brooks, who, like Tagovailoa, is a team captain, declined to comment on the Dolphins' player meetings when asked. Coach Mike McDaniel said player-led meetings are "outside of what I demand" and he's seen players hold themselves accountable within what he's asked them to do.

"We've been very accountable to me," McDaniel said. "It sounds like there was something on his mind in regard to the specific meetings with a couple individuals that he was trying to get corrected ... with direct communication. I think that's the only way to lead as far as where we've been at as a program. I think we've opened the air on all of that and it's very clear how we hold people accountable and with all those things.

"Clearly he's sending a message, but from my standpoint, everything that I've asked of the guys, they have delivered on. I'm sure whomever he is talking to, they'll deliver as well."

Tardiness and absences were a prevalent issue within the Dolphins' organization last season, when McDaniel said he frequently fined players to no avail. A source who previously played for Miami under McDaniel told ESPN that players were frequently late to meetings and practice dating back to McDaniel's first season in 2022, but it wasn't reprimanded because the team was winning games.

That same source said the frequency and severity of players' punctuality was exacerbated by last season's struggles, when Miami rebounded from a 2-6 start to finish 8-9.

Multiple sources confirmed to ESPN that Jalen Ramsey and Tyreek Hill were the most notable frequent offenders. Miami traded Ramsey to the Pittsburgh Steelers this offseason while Hill was placed on injured reserve after suffering a season-ending dislocated knee in Week 4.

McDaniel said it's difficult to lose games in the final minutes, as the Dolphins have done four times this season. He pointed to his players' perseverance Sunday as a positive sign but insisted there are no moral victories at this level.

He also said he and his staff will collectively work to solve the Dolphins' late-game issues.

"I try to find themes for things that are occurring. Each game is unique to its own," McDaniel said. "I was looking to make sure that this team didn't fall victim to, 'all right man, we want to win, but oh shoot, here we go again.' And fortunately, or unfortunately, I got to find that information out in the third quarter -- because there's where the team quits if the losses have beat them down too much. It wasn't the case.

"They fought back and I was proud of that, but it's not what we're looking for. There's zero victory that would be considered moral. However, I think it's reasonable to have expectation that we have our best performance at the end of games as we continue to work as a team. Otherwise, we'll be forced to deal with the same result."