Xavien Howard might be the kind of person who holds a grudge. This is based on his post-Week 1 comments about his former team, the Miami Dolphins, and specifically that team's quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa. The Indianapolis Colts' cornerback, though, knows what he speaks.
Howard spent his first eight seasons with the Dolphins, and, when healthy, was a very good player. He was a four-time Pro Bowler and one-time First-Team All-Pro. His job was to study the deficiencies of an offense, and he did that well. This also includes his own team in practice. The Colts signed Howard in the preseason.
In other words, Howard knew how to attack Tagovailoa, and that paid off for Indianapolis in Week 1. Make Tagovailoa think about what he has to do, and trouble sets in.
Indianapolis Colts' Xavien Howard delivers brutal truth about Dolphins' Tua Tagovailoa
Howard said, "We knew the guy, he gets the ball out pretty quick. 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...You could just tell with the big eyes and him getting flustered."
Tagovailoa is a good quarterback, but he also plays in a system that used to get the best out of his talents. The Dolphins no longer have an elite offensive line, so the offense has struggled quite a bit more. But the rub on Miami has also been that they are soft. If they face a physical team, they wilt.
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One thing the Indianapolis Colts are is physical. The matchup, as long as quarterback Daniel Jones played well, and he did, was set up to be a poor one for the Dolphins. This was made worse by Miami having to play on the road, and they are a far better home team.
As for Xavien Howard, he was very good in his first game with his new team. He was targeted just twice, but didn't allow a completion. His other raw statistics were minimal. He wasn't involved in a tackle and didn't have a pass defended.
That, though, speaks volumes about how good Howard and the Indianapolis Colts' defense overall were against the Miami Dolphins. The team was fundamentally sound, and Howard's job as an outside cornerback is to make sure the opposing team doesn't complete passes to his receiver. Mission accomplished.