Dolphins' Mike McDaniel calls Tua Tagovailoa contract a 'cool validation' for QB ahead of high-stakes season

Tua Tagovailoa just got his wish for a lucrative long-term contract with the Miami Dolphins . And his head coach, Mike McDaniel, believes the quarterback was always bound to cash in, calling Tagovailoa's $212 million extension an unsurprising but "cool validation" of the signal-caller's early-career achievements, per The Palm Beach Post .

"I'm happy, but I also expected it to get done, and now that it's done it's about moving forward," McDaniel said Sunday, per The Post. "It's maybe a handshake and a smile but it's not a celebration. I'm fired up for the organization, really fired up for Tua and the work he's done to receive something like that."

Now the NFL's third-highest-paid quarterback in terms of average annual value ($53.1 million), Tagovailoa is aware he faces increased expectations as a result of his compensation, McDaniel added.

"It's a pretty hot place to be, quarterback in the National Football League," the coach said. "You get a lot of reps to see how people respond to things. That is the nature you should expect, and Tua is very aware of that. ... [The players] already have pressure and expectations for themselves. Tua has shown me throughout the entire offseason he knows what time it is."