NFL 2024 Thanksgiving: Miami Dolphins and Tua Tagovailoa look to debunk cold-weather narrative against Green Bay Packers | NFL News

A freezing, possibly snowy Lambeau Field awaits Tua Tagovailoa, Mike McDaniel and the Miami Dolphins as they try to bury their cold weather unhappiness when they face the Green Bay Packers on Thanksgiving Thursday.

Tagovailoa has reignited Miami’s playoff hopes since returning to the lineup after his absence due to a concussion earlier this season, becoming one of the NFL’s most efficient passers, sparking a three-game winning streak.

He enters Thursday night 0-7 in games where the temperature was 40 degrees or colder, with the weather in Green Bay expected to dip as low as 20 degrees (-6 degrees Celsius), with a high of just 31 degrees ( 0.5 degrees Celsius).

“I’m looking forward to killing narratives,” Tagovailoa said this week. “So let’s go. Let’s go.”

Granted, serious injuries last season would play a role, but Miami’s 2023 season was cut short in brutal subzero conditions against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, particularly in the playoffs.

Head coach McDaniel downplayed his team’s discourse about the cold weather, welcoming the Thanksgiving spotlight and an opportunity for Miami to truly revive its postseason ambitions by moving to 6-6 with a win.

“All I wanted to do all week was carry ice cubes in my pockets and throw them at the players,” McDaniel said of how he prepared his players. “It’s nothing revolutionary. I’m not going to throw it out into the world and pretend we’ve checked the “We have the answer to this question” box. It’s a football game.

“How do I feel about stories? I’m very comfortable with narratives because I think they’re very predictable and retroactive. So what else should you expect – they’ll always say you can’t do it until you can.”

“I think you just have to understand what it is and not make it into anything, because to me it’s really about what are we talking about? We’re talking about playing a football game in a really, really cool environment, in an environment that I think out of.” Of all the places to play in cold weather, Lambeau is probably the one you think about the least cold after.

“You can’t help but – you can’t escape the history, and I know our boys are going to be excited just for the opportunity to play on Thanksgiving.”

Tagovailoa completed 77 of 104 passes for 812 yards, eight touchdowns and just one interception in Miami’s three straight wins, including four scoring passes in a 34-15 victory over the New England Patriots last weekend. With a rating of 116.2, he is the second-highest rated quarterback since week eight.

He has brought a resurgence to a Dolphins offense that was lost and looked aimless at times during his absence, giving players like Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle a chance to return to prominence in the playoffs and a playoff push in the second half of the season to threaten.

“Tua’s return has completely changed the way they approach offense,” Sky Sports NFL’s Phoebe Schecter said on the latest episode of Inside the Huddle.

“Waddle is starting to look like the guy we know he can be. Tight end Jonnu Smith has done a phenomenal job and all those pieces of the puzzle are falling into place, but the question is can they do it in the cold.”

“I know it sounds pedantic, but when you grow up and play in the warmth all the time and are exposed to the cold weather outside, it changes you, you immediately stiffen up. The way you catch the ball is different, all the elements add up.” .

“That means you have to be extremely creative and find ways to get your guys in shape early against a Green Bay team that is in shape despite some questionable shooting from Jordan Love.”

The Packers host the Dolphins after dismantling the San Francisco 49ers 38-10 last Sunday, with Josh Jacobs rushing for three touchdowns and more than 100 yards, continuing his impressive first season with the team.

It was also the first game this season in which quarterback Jordan Love did not throw an interception, as he scored 16 touchdowns to 11 picks in eight games.

“Jacobs changed the game for them, and when you look at Matt LaFleur and his game plans, Jacobs is one of the top three defenders in the league right now,” Schecter added. “You see how that helps a young quarterback.

“I think they were able to answer the questions really well, which shows they are making progress and developing.

“It’s the right pieces of the puzzle and a defense that will keep you in games. I’m betting on Green Bay in this game.”

Watch Detroit Lions vs Chicago Bears live on Sky Sports NFL on Thanksgiving Thursday from 5:30pm, followed by Dallas Cowboys vs New York Giants and Miami Dolphins vs Green Bay Packers; The Kansas City Chiefs face the Las Vegas Raiders on Friday at 8 p.m