The Facts: Tagovailoa arrived in Miami with expectations typical of a top-five pick and didn't quite meet them in his abbreviated rookie season. The blame wasn't solely on the rookie, of course. For one, Tagovailoa was coming off a significant hip injury that required surgery and grueling rehab just to be able to be available by the time the 2020 season began. He was also forced to consume and digest an NFL playbook largely from home before he joined his teammates for training camp over the summer. The latter showed in his performance, Tagovailoa admitted Wednesday, saying he "didn't know the playbook really, really good."

Diehards Line:"Last year, for me, I wasn't as comfortable just in general," Tagovailoa said. "I wasn't comfortable calling plays. I think the guys that we had last year were phenomenal. I just didn't have the comfortability of checking plays, alerting plays. I just rode with the play even if I knew in a way that it wasn't going to work. I was going to try to make it work. But the firepower we have this year, I mean, it's good, but you got to get it out to them, too. If you're able to protect yourself, then get it out to them and have them make plays, then you'll be good. ..." As for his health, Tagovailoa said he learned which parts of his body were carrying the load when he was throwing the ball, especially after strength increases have changed the way he feels this time around. His strength and conditioning process has changed significantly as a result, adding it "looks a lot different this year" because of the improvements he's made in his hip. If that's true, then it's only a matter of time before Tagovailoa is up to speed with the expectations that came with his selection. If you ask Gesicki, Tagovailoa is already on his way.