Read the full transcript from Tua Tagovailoa's press conference on July 23, 2025.
Q: What does it mean to be back out here Day 1 of training camp? What's the feeling, what's the attitude. Is it different from other years?
"I think every year you want to think it feels different. You want to say it feels different. It's like any other year. You get your time off, then as you're kind of slowing down that time of being off you sort of miss the guys, you miss the camaraderie, you miss the locker room talks. You just miss that community in a way. It's always good to have your family around, but it's a little different. It really is a different world when you step into the locker room. I think a lot of things that are said in the locker room, too – and you can't really say it out in public as well (laughter) – so I think that's what makes it great in wanting to come back and wanting to get to work with the guys and things of that nature."
Q: Does this team have more of a bunker mentality, more of a us against the world mentality? It kind of seemed that way with LB Bradley Chubb and FB Alec Ingold when they were speaking. Is that accurate, do you think?
"I think there is a lot of guys that are taking on more of a leadership role and are coming out to be more vocal in front of the guys, in front of the team. But not saying things, allowing their actions to kind of back up what they are saying as well. I wouldn't necessarily say that it is a bunker mindset, or a bunker mentality where we're all kind of hunched up and it's us against the world. Really it's us against ourselves, is kind of how we look at it. And what are we doing every single day to get each other better, but then what are we doing to get ourselves better to get that guy on the other side of the ball, or that guy next to me better. That's what it is."
Q: What does S Minkah Fitzpatrick bring?
"He brings another Alabama player. (laughter) I have so many good things to say about Minkah because when I was there my freshman year that was his last year before we ended up parting ways when he entered the draft. I have a lot of good things to say about him. The mentor in the way that he was for that locker room back in '17, that '17 year and '18. The leadership that he gives off, sort of the standard. I was talking to Mike (McDaniel) about it, too, with 'Mink'. There is the standard and there is someone you can look at and you can say, 'that's a standard' and I can't put words to what that standard is, but I kind of want to gravitate towards that person and I think that's what Minkah gives off."
Q: Yesterday WR Tyreek Hill talked about being the best version of himself, keeping the focus on football. What have you noticed in changes in him from the end of last year until today?
"I think there is a lot more vulnerability with Tyreek (Hill). He's conversating a lot more with the guys., not just about football but about things off the field. Being vulnerable with some of the things people know about his personal life and things of that nature. And I think that's the first step to him building true relationships and a real connection with a lot of the guys in there. Everyone knows what he can do in the field, everyone respects what he can do on the field; but I think he's still trying to figure things out for himself as well. Kind of the man he wants to be and he's not too young. Everybody makes mistakes. It's just some people, they're in the spotlight and their deals get pushed out more than some others. Just got to cut him some grace. That's our teammate, we love him. But as a person if you get to know him, I think you'd love him, too."
Q: You talked about WR Tyreek Hill and relationships, after what he said last year did you guys have to rebuild your relationship together?
"Sure. I would say we're still continuing to do that. But it's not just with me, it's with a lot of the guys. I'm not the only one that heard that. You guys aren't the only people that heard that. A lot of people that follow football, that follow the Miami Dolphins, that follow Tyreek, that are fans of his; everyone has seen that. So when you say something like that you don't just come back from that with a 'hey, my bad.' You've got to work that relationship up, you've got to build everything up again. It's still a work in progress. Not just for me, but for everybody. Like I said he's working on himself, he's working on the things that he says he wants to get better with and do better on. That's the first step to me and so I commend him for doing that."
Q: You've been open about wanting to stay healthy and be available for your teammates. What are some of the things that you've implemented this offseason that you are putting into practice now in camp and then leading up to preseason games and obviously the start of the season?
"I would say the first thing is it's a mindset thing for me. Like I've said in previous interviews, is this the right thing to do in the heat of the moment where I've got to make a split decision on should I go for the first down, should I not, should I do this on fourth down, should I not? And then given the circumstances, right – is it to go to the playoffs, is it to win a must-win game. You've got to throw all of those in there. But I think the most important thing is I've got to be more selfless instead of being selfish and I'm thinking this is what the guys want from me. Well, I don't know that because I haven't talked to them about what do you expect for me to do in that situation. So to cut everything out, just slide, get off the field. Give yourself another opportunity and then if that opportunity doesn't avail you've got the next week to go out there and prove yourself or prove to your team that that wasn't what it was. I would say it's a mindset thing for this offseason."
Q: I'm doing something on motivation, self-motivation. Is there something you do or think about or process when you need to motivate yourself?
"Yes. I watch a good amount of podcasts. I listen to a good amount of audio books as well. I'm reading a book right now. That's kind of like my process before I go to bed. It kind of helps with the dreaming aspect of it. You kind of go to bed, you kind of think about it, think a little more about it. Sometimes you get 'a-ha' moments as you're sleeping. You wake up and something hits you in that sense. But I would say that's what I do in terms of motivation. And then you can take little snippets of what certain people say or little quotes in the book. Copy, paste it, print it, put it on your locker, things of that nature that always reminds you and gets you in the right frame of mind."
When did you know about the S Minkah Fitzpatrick trade and what was your initial reaction to it?) – "I didn't know too much about the Minkah (Fitzpatrick) trade. I try to stay away from what they've got going on upstairs with the talks with other teams. But when we ended up getting Minkah, I thought that was unique because Minkah started out here and then going there and coming back, I wasn't sure how Minkah was going to feel about that given the prior scars that he had with what the media portrayed was happening behind the scenes. There's just things I didn't know where his headspace was. Had lunch with him on Sunday, got to talk to him about a good amount of things. It's not like catching up like with me and 'J-dub' (Jaylen Waddle). Because I'm on the opposite side of the ball, I only had him for one year. It's probably six or seven years that I've seen him since. I'm a different person than I was in Alabama, he's a different person than he was at Alabama. So just kind of getting to rekindle that fire of a relationship with him. But I'm excited, I'm excited to have him. We're going to see. We're competing right now so it's good fun."
Q: TE Jonnu Smith is someone you were pretty close with off the field. What was your reaction to him being traded? "Throughout that entire process I was talking to Jonnu. Was trying to figure things out the same way he was trying to figure out things through his agent. Then I would also be talking to Chris (Grier) and whatnot. At the end of the day I can't' do anything about it. He did all he could to put himself in the position to go up to the team, negotiate, make all the money he needs to make to help set up his family. We talked about it and when he got traded, I messaged with him. We talked for a little bit. That's my boy, I love Jonnu. That's how the league works and that won't change the relationship I have with him."
Q: What needs to happen to re-spark the connection with WR Tyreek Hill and WR Jaylen Waddle this season?
"I think you continue to work with those guys. Tyreek wasn't here as much practicing during OTAs because he had his surgery, he had to do things to make sure that he was ready for training camp. And with 'J-dub' (Jaylen Waddle), we had those reps in OTAs. We had some reps during the offseason when we were gone. To me that's all it takes. It's continued reps, it's continuing to communicate through what you see, what I see. And then we kind of maneuver it through there and we adjust."
