Cam Newton is not backing down in his escalating back-and-forth with Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
Newton doubled down on his criticism of Tagovailoa Friday on ESPN’s “First Take” and went a bit further in his assessment of Tagovailoa’s play. Tagovailoa had responded to Newton’s initial criticism by saying it is “easy” for Newton to criticize him from a media perspective, but that playing quarterback is much harder.
Newton obviously was not buying that, and stood by his previous remarks.
“This Tua Tagovailoa that we have seen within the last 12 months is not something and someone that is indicative of what we have seen before,” Newton said. “I used the reference as quiet Tua. Alabama Tua. Tua under Nick Saban. Everybody understands where I’m coming from. When I see the situation that has taken place in Miami, it’s more Love Island drama than football. I wouldn’t say it’s all on Tua, but it is a main ingredient.
“I just know what he’s capable of. There are times that we have seen Tua Tagovailoa play football and it was at a high level. You don’t make $53 million by just being a random on the street. … The truth is, it’s also easy to go [0-3].”
Holy Sh*t: Cam Newton responds to Tua Tagovailoa’s comments regarding Cam's criticism.
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) September 26, 2025
“When I see the situation that has taken place in Miami, it’s more Love Island drama than football… The truth is, it’s also easy to go [0-3].”
😳😳😳 pic.twitter.com/mrSNwaThb0
Newton’s point all along was that Tagovailoa has been generating too much drama for a player who is not performing to his capability, and has at times been too dismissive of legitimate criticism. Tagovailoa essentially proved his point by taking the bait and dismissing Newton’s comments. He made it even worse by phrasing his response in a way that made it seem like he was calling Newton, a former MVP, someone who did not understand how hard it is to play quarterback in the NFL.
Tagovailoa has thrown five touchdown passes and four interceptions in three games, and his Dolphins are still winless. As long as that remains the case, taking on Newton in the media probably is not in his best interests.
