Former Crimson Tide signal caller Tua Tagovailoa has had a tumultuous begin to his  NFL career to say the least.

Prior to the Dolphins selecting Tagovailoa fifth overall in 2020, the young quarterback suffered a devastating injury in his final season at Alabama, dislocating his hip and fracturing the posterior wall of his hip socket; the same injury suffered by Bo Jackson in 1991 that ultimately ended his career.

Vrbo Citrus Bowl - Michigan v Alabama
Getty Images
loading...
Alt 101.7 logo
Get our free mobile app

For Tagovailoa, the damage was luckily not quite as severe as Jackson's case and the Ewa Beach, HI native was able to make a recovery by the time his rookie year rolled around. In that rookie season; however, Tagovailoa was only used sporadically, starting just nine games and frequently being pulled out of contests in favor of Ryan Fitzpatrick. Not to mention, the rookie looked to not be fully recovered from his injury at times, lacking the fluidity and smoothness of his play in college.

In the offseason following his rookie year, Tagovailoa began training with South Florida based Per4orm Sports, working to regain the balance and strength he once had in his right hip while at Alabama.

After spending all of his rookie offseason working on getting back to his former playing form, Tagovailoa had a much improved sophomore campaign. In 12 starts, the second year quarterback completed nearly 68% of his passes for 2,653 yards and 16 TD's.

While there was clear improvement from his rookie season, Tagovailoa still lacked some of the same velocity he possessed at while at Alabama, mostly due to how much his injury had set back the quarterback's planned training regimen for his first few professional seasons.

Now, with his first opportunity to truly focus on becoming a better quarterback and not just getting back healthy, Tagovailoa looks like his old self.

As you can see from first part of the video shot in April of 2021, Tagovailoa's velocity and accuracy had taken a serious hit at the cost of him rehabbing his hip. Now, with an entire offseason to dedicate solely to those two things instead of just getting back on the field, the third-year quarterback should shine.

The Dolphins drafted Tagovailoa's former wideout, Jaylen Waddle, in 2021 and also picked up one of the NFL's best receivers, Tyreek Hill, by way of trade this offseason. A revamped offense led by a revamped Tagovailoa with a new guru of a head coach in Mike McDaniel means that there could maybe be a new team to look out for in the AFC East.

Crimson Tide's NFL Draft First-Rounders During Saban's Tenure

Take a look back on the Crimson Tide's first round selections under head coach Nick Saban.

Starting Alabama Quarterbacks Under Nick Saban

Here is every quarterback that has started for the Crimson Tide under Nick Saban.

Highest Rated Recruits of the Saban Era By Year

Check out Alabama's highest-rated recruit from each Crimson Tide recruiting class during the Nick Saban era.

More From Alt 101.7