Dolphins' Tagovailoa says McDaniel built him up after Flores tore him down as young NFL quarterback

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Tua Tagovailoa left no doubt he likes playing for Mike McDaniel a lot more than he did Brian Flores.

Fresh off signing a four-year contract extension last month, Tagovailoa said he appreciates McDaniel's positive coaching style after dealing with Flores' negativity during his first two seasons in the NFL.

“To put it in simplest terms, if you woke up every morning and I told you you suck at what you did, that you don’t belong doing what you do, that you shouldn’t be here, that this guy should be here, that you haven’t earned this right. ... And then you have somebody else come in and tell you, ‘Dude, you are the best fit for us, you are accurate, you are the best.’ How would it make you feel listening to one or the other?” Tagovailoa said in an interview that aired Monday on “The Dan LeBatard Show”.

Tagovailoa said the criticism beat him down to the point that he began to believe it. He was the No. 5 overall draft pick in 2020 and won the starting job, but he was pulled twice in the fourth quarter of games for Ryan Fitzpatrick.

The following season Tagovailoa's future with the Dolphins was in doubt amid speculation they were seeking a trade for Deshaun Watson.

“I don’t care who you are. You can be the president of the United States. You have a terrible person that’s telling you things that you don’t want to hear or that you probably shouldn't ever hear, you're going to start to believe that about yourself. And so that’s sort of like what ended up happening," Tagovailoa said.

The Dolphins fired Flores and replaced him with McDaniel for the 2022 season. Tagovailoa said it has taken two years to train the negative thoughts out of his head. With McDaniel devising schemes to suit Tagovailoa’s skills, the Dolphins averaged an NFL-leading 401 yards per game last season. Tagovailoa threw for 29 touchdowns and a league-best 4,624 yards.

Asked about Tagovailoa's comments Monday, McDaniel said, “I am not spending much time patting myself on the back for much. I think there’s a lot of players that have grown since I’ve been here. And that growth is all that I care about.”

Flores, now the Minnesota Vikings' defensive coordinator, is scheduled to meet with reporters Tuesday.

Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said he wouldn't comment on a matter involving another team.

“I can just tell you, I know the players ‘Flo’ works with, he’s got great relationships here. He really has,” O'Connell said. “I know you guys have heard a lot of them talk about how much they enjoy playing for him and how much I enjoy working with him every day, and that’s all I can really comment on.”

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Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel speaks during a news conference after a preseason NFL football game against the Washington Commanders, Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) throws during the first half of a preseason NFL football game against the Washington Commanders, Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa stands on the field before a preseason NFL football game against the Washington Commanders, Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

LONDON (AP) — A judge on Friday rejected plans for the United Kingdom’s first new coal mine in three decades, delivering a victory for climate groups who challenged the project's claim it would have zero impact on global emissions.

High Court Justice David Holgate's decision follows a June ruling by the U.K. Supreme Court that said planners reviewing oil well-drilling permits must consider the greenhouse gas emissions from burning the extracted oil.

“The assumption that the proposed mine would not produce a net increase in greenhouse gas emissions, or would be a net zero mine, is legally flawed," Holgate said.

Friends of the Earth and South Lakes Action on Climate Change, a local group, challenged the government’s approval of the plan for the mine’s development in a coastal town in England’s northwest Cumbria area.

The developer, West Cumbria Mining, defended the proposal in court after the Labour government, which was elected to power in July, dropped its support for the project approved by their Conservative predecessors.

“This is fantastic news and a huge victory for our environment and everyone who has fought against this climate-damaging and completely unnecessary coal mine," said attorney Niall Toru of Friends of the Earth. “The case against it is overwhelming: it would have huge climate impacts, its coal isn’t needed and it harms the U.K.’s international reputation on climate."

The ruling sends the decision back to the government for reconsideration.

The mining company, which had promoted the project as a net-zero positive, said it would consider the ruling but declined to comment.

When the Conservatives approved the plan in 2022, environmentalists said it was a backward step and would make it harder to achieve a goal of generating 100% of electricity from clean energy sources by 2035 and reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The left-leaning Labour government has also distanced itself from its predecessor's emphasis on oil and gas exploration. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced plans to increase wind power generation and pledged to not issue new oil drilling licenses in the North Sea.

The mine on the site of a shuttered chemical plant in Whitehaven, a town 340 miles (550 kilometers) northwest of London, would have extracted coking coal used in steelmaking rather than producing electricity.

Opponents said the coal would no longer be needed domestically as Britain's largest steelmaking operation in Port Talbot, Wales, owned by India’s Tata Steel, transitions from coal-fired blast furnaces to electric arc furnaces, which emit less carbon.

Follow AP’s coverage of the climate and environment: https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment

FILE - An aerial view of the the site of a proposed new coal mine near the Cumbrian town of Whitehaven in northwest England, Monday, Oct. 4, 2021. A London judge rejected on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, plans for the United Kingdom’s first new coal mine in three decades, delivering a victory Friday for climate groups who challenged the project's claim it would have zero impact on global emissions. (AP Photo/Jon Super, File)