MIAMI GARDENS — For Tua Tagovailoa, his fiery halftime address to his offense Sunday was caused by one thing.

"We just needed to get our heads out of our ass," the Miami Dolphins $200-million quarterback said.

And that leadership, coming in the 26-year old's first game since signing his record-breaking contract, is exactly what this team wants, and needed.

What set off Tua was a lethargic first half in which the Dolphins fell behind the Jacksonville Jaguars by 14 points in the season opener before cutting the deficit in half one minute before halftime. And although it took a few series to get going in the second half, an angry Tua made an impact with Miami rallying for a 20-17 victory at Hard Rock Stadium, a game coach Mike McDaniel said his team would have lost the last two years.

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"I was really pumped to hear him constructively lead," McDaniel said. "It was 'let's adhere to our standard.' A captain and a franchise quarterback has to be that voice."

A voice that even one of the men Tua called out, receiver Tyreek Hill, appreciated.

Tyreek Hill liked what he heard from Tua at halftime

"He was animated," said Hill, who was playing just hours after being detained in handcuffs outside the stadium after being pulled over for reckless driving. "I'm like, 'OK, I'm liking this … yeahhh, let's go man.'

"He called me out, I'm like, 'I'm loving this, bro.' "

There was a lot more to love in that second half after Miami had just 29 rushing yards and Tua was 11 of 21 in the first 30 minutes. And foremost was the play that completely turned momentum in Miami's favor, an 80-yard touchdown pass from Tua to Tyreek late in the third quarter, a play in which Tua went away from his first option (Jaylen Waddle) to get the ball to a streaking Hill, who turned on the burners down the sideline, outrunning two Jags defenders.

That quick strike was part of an 11-second sequence that determined this outcome, starting when safety Jevon Holland forced a fumble as running back Travis Etienne was about to put Jacksonville ahead, 24-7.

The ball was recovered by Miami in the end zone and one play later it was 17-14.

"Huge momentum swing," Tua said.

Punctuated by a huge play.

Tua explained what cause him to turn from Waddle to Hill on the touchdown.

"I seen space," he said. "There was nobody out there. I think Tyreek was coming into my vision. I skipped my first read."

Tua sounded almost apologetic for making that decision, which is the opposite of how McDaniel felt about the play.

"Something this offseason we emphasized," McDaniel said about not always taking the first option in the progression.

Tua's stat line did not tell entire story on Sunday

The touchdown helped bolster Tua's stat line, one that did not quite tell the whole story about Tua's day. He finished 23 of 37 for 338 yards that one score and no interceptions.

But Tua will admit it was an uneven performance after overthrowing a couple of wide-open receivers in the first half. Even his touch on the short passes was not up to Tua's standards.

"We're going to see how we can not be as sluggish and start fast," Tua said. "We can't be doing things like that."

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So when Tua was calling out his offense in the locker room, he could have been talking to himself, too.

"It was a cool moment because it was genuine and it was not anything but constructive," McDaniel said. "There were details … he definitely felt there's several guys that were loose there.

"It was cool to have him beat me to the punch. Something if he hadn't said I probably would have."

Tom D'Angelo is a senior sports columnist and golf reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@pbpost.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Tua Tagovailoa calls out Tyreek Hill, teammates at halftime vs. Jaguars