Tua Tagovailoa and the Miami Dolphins suffered a crashing humiliation at the hands of the Indianapolis Colts in week one of the 2025 NFL season. However, the bleeding didn’t stop at that, as a former star in Miami voiced a stark message on the quarterback in South Florida.
Xavien Howard was one of the best players for the Dolphins in the past couple of years. In times where the Phins have seriously struggled to compete in the NFL, the cornerback proved to be a playmaker time and again. However, his production declined in the 2023 campaign, which led to Miami releasing him.
That feeling clearly stuck with Howard, who has now claimed revenge on his former teammates during Indianapolis’ 33-8 rag-dolling of Miami in Week 1. Tagovailoa had one of the worst games of his career, and the outcry around the organization is calling for immediate changes. In such a dramatic scenario, the Dolphins’ most valuable player in 2020 (when he led the league with 10 interceptions) struck a cold-blooded dagger.
“We knew the guy, he gets the ball out pretty quick,” Howard admitted, per ESPN. “And once we take away his first read, I feel like it’s panic mode after that. And it showed yesterday. We took away his first read and he was trying to get rid of the ball real quick.”
Rubbing salt on the wounds
Miami had grown accustomed to occasionally blowing out inferior opponents in the NFL. Now, the offense is only a mirage of what it once was in Miami Gardens, and the roles have been reversed. The Dolphins took a thrashing and seem to be in a downward trend, which could turn catastrophically for the franchise. To make matters worse, the Colts decided to add insult to injury.
“You could just tell with the big eyes and him getting flustered,” defensive end Laiatu Latu—who picked off Tagovailoa for his first career interception—commented.
Sending a message
It seemed like everything that could go wrong did for the Dolphins. Meanwhile, for Howard and the Colts, it was the complete opposite. Fans at Lucas Oil Stadium were treated to a statement performance from Indianapolis, which notched its first opening-week win since 2013.
For Howard personally, this matchup was about sending a message to every level of Miami’s organization. From the front office to the last player on the depth chart, he wanted to prove they made a mistake letting him go. Whether the Dolphins were right or wrong in doing so, the cornerback made sure they remembered what he’s capable of.
Vendetta
Not only did star wide receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle combine for fewer than 75 receiving yards, Howard also made a play of his own by recovering a fumble from Tagovailoa, who ended the day with 14 completions for 114 yards, one touchdown pass, two interceptions, and a lost fumble.
“I barely could sleep the night before the game because I was just thinking about, like, how I’m going to feel playing against my former team,” Howard concluded. “And I went out there, [put] my feelings to the side and kept it about the business, and we took care of business. I wanted to put that out there. We definitely didn’t want them to [score] any points, but they got eight points. We definitely wanted a shutout.”
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The message has been heard loud and clear in Miami Gardens. However, it’s not just about Howard’s personal revenge—it’s an urgent wake-up call for the Dolphins. The franchise has disaster written all over it, and as things stand, everyone’s seat should be red-hot. That goes from general manager Chris Grier to head coach Mike McDaniel, including several players in between.