The Pittsburgh Steelers have a massive need at quarterback, and while all indications are that Aaron Rodgers will re-sign for a second season, GM Omar Khan and the organization have options at a significant discount on the open market should they choose to look elsewhere.
The Arizona Cardinals reportedly plan to release quarterback Kyler Murray, and the Las Vegas Raiders reportedly plan to do the same with Geno Smith. That will put both veteran quarterbacks on the open market despite having major guarantees attached to them, lowering the potential cost for new suitors due to offset language.
Now, a quarterback with a similar profile is about to become available.
Dolphins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan announced Monday morning in a statement on the team’s X account that Miami is moving on from Tua Tagovailoa. According to NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero, Tagovailoa will be designated a post-June 1 cut, allowing them to split nearly $100 million in dead cap hits across two seasons.
The Dolphins will use a post-June 1 designation for Tua, meaning as of June 1 they can split the dead cap hit: $67.4M in 2026 and $31.8M in 2027. https://t.co/Lwcv9Bx2Y9
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 9, 2026
Tagovailoa was set to count $56,267,647 against the Dolphins’ cap in 2026 with a base salary of $39 million. But with a new GM in Sullivan and a new head coach in Jeff Hafley, the Dolphins decided now is the time to move on from the former No. 5 overall pick out of Alabama.
In six seasons in Miami, Tagovailoa had some highs and lows. He dealt with significant concussion issues that has raised concerns about his NFL future.
Across those six seasons, Tagovailao played in 78 games with 76 starts, going 44-32 as a starter. He threw for 18,166 yards with 120 touchdowns to 59 interceptions. He had back-to-back strong seasons in 2022 and 2023, including a career-high 4,624 yards in 2023, but injuries and inconsistency in recent years have plagued him.
The Dolphins, under former head coach Mike McDaniel, benched him late in the 2025 season after a Monday Night Football loss in Pittsburgh for rookie Quinn Ewers. That all but signaled Tagovailoa’s time in Miami was coming to an end.
Now, he hits a crowded quarterback market with a ton of experience. Tagovailoa will be another quarterback who can sign for just the veteran minimum due to offset language. However, Tagovailoa’s veteran minimum would be $1.215 million due to six seasons in the NFL, while the others could make $1.3 million for having seven-plus seasons.
He will join the likes of Murray, Smith, Kirk Cousins, and Justin Fields as quarterbacks that could be had for the minimum.
That should give the Steelers plenty of options, should they shift attention away from Aaron Rodgers under first-year head coach Mike McCarthy.
Adding an experienced quarterback at a significant discount is what the Steelers did in 2024, landing Russell Wilson on a one-year, $1.2 million deal in free agency after the Denver Broncos cut him loose. Wilson had some success in Pittsburgh, going 6-5 though he lost his final five games as a starter as things fell apart in the Steel City.
We’ll see if Khan and the Steelers want to go down that path once again at quarterback in 2026. If they do, they options aplenty.
