Tua Tagovailoa and the Miami Dolphins have a long-term contract agreement that solidifies their commitment to him as their franchise quarterback, a league source confirmed Friday.

The deal is for four years and $212.4 million, with $167 guaranteed, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. It is the largest contract in team history.

The average annual salary on the extension is $53.1 million, which puts Tua behind only Joe Burrow of the Bengals and Trevor Lawrence of the Jaguars, who are at $55 million per season.

After agreeing to terms, Tagovailoa posted on X from G.O.A.T. Farm Sports to comment about his new deal, first joking that he was breaking news.

"I never break any news. This is the first time for me. I just wanted to say that I agreed to a contract extension with the Miami Dolphins," Tua said. "I want to give a big shout out to Mr. Ross (team owner Stephen Ross). I want to thank (general manager) Chris Grier, (Senior Vice President, Football & Business Administration) Brandon Shore for working endlessly on this deal.

"I want to thank (coach) Mike McDaniel for believing in me. I want to thank all my other coaches as well. I also want to give a big shoutout to my teammates for believing in me and also supporting me throughout this process. I also want to thank the fans as well. Fins Up."

Tagovailoa, 26, has played four seasons with the Dolphins since he was the fifth overall pick of the 2020 NFL draft.

In 2023, Tua led the NFL with 4,264 passing yards. In 2022, Tua led the NFL with a passer rating of 105.5.

Since the arrival of Mike McDaniel, Tua's confidence and proficiency have skyrocketed.

Tua has also become more comfortable leading with his voice.

And although Tua has had multiple concussions, Grier has also been consistent in expressing Miami believes it has the answer at quarterback.

Miami Dolphins believe in Tua Tagovailoa's future

The Dolphins have long been enamored of Tua's rhythm, timing, anticipation and accuracy.

After bulking up and training in jiujitsu to help prevent injury in 2023, Tua has slimmed down in the offseason.

McDaniel has said Tua is capable of extending more plays in 2024.

Tua has an outstanding career win-loss record of 32-19.

Critics have noted he has not fared as well against very good teams or in cold conditions.

Tua also does not have elite speed or arm strength.

But the Dolphins believe he is an ideal fit for McDaniel's offense, which is predicated on timing, ball placement, speed and misdirection.

Tua Tagovailoa's long-term contract extension was always goal

The Dolphins took an intentional step back as a franchise in 2019, intending to use a high draft choice on their quarterback of the future in 2020.

Tua, who has yet to lead the Dolphins to a playoff victory, will forever be compared with first overall pick Joe Burrow of the Bengals and sixth overall pick Justin Herbert of the Chargers.

Each of those players received contract extensions before Tua, who was scheduled to play on a fifth-year option of $23.2 million this season.

Tua is a notch behind Burrow's deal of $55 million per season.

Tua is a notch ahead of Herbert's deal of $52.5 million per season.

Tua's college classmate, Jalen Hurts of the Eagles, has a deal worth $51 million per season.

It was truly never a question of if the Dolphins would give Tua his new deal.

He did opt to make a point with hold-ins during offseason workouts and the first two days of training camp - on the field during workouts but observing and not fully participating - before taking part fully in Friday's practice.

It was only a matter of when.

Joe Schad is a journalist covering the Miami Dolphins and the NFL at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on Instagram and on X @schadjoe. Sign up for Joe's free weekly Dolphins Pulse Newsletter. Help support our work by subscribing today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Tua Tagovailoa contract extension completed by Miami Dolphins