Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa to ESPN analyst: 'Keep my name out of your mouth'

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla., Aug. 23 (UPI) -- Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa clapped back at former Pittsburgh Steelers safety Ryan Clark on Wednesday, telling the ESPN analyst to keep his name out of his mouth, after he criticized his weight.

"I come from a Samoan family where respect is everything, but it does get to a point," Tagovailoa told reporters at training camp in Miami Gardens, Fla.

"A little easy on that, buddy. We are pretty tough-minded people. If we need to get scrappy, we can get scrappy, too."

Tagovailoa made the comments after a practice at the Baptist Health Training Complex. Clark made the comments earlier this week on NFL Live.

"He wasn't in the gym," Clark said. "I bet you that. He might have spent a lot of time at the tattoo parlor. He was not at the dinner table, eating what the nutritionist had advised. He looks happy. He is thick."

Clark played in the NFL from 2002 through 2014. Tagovailoa struggled to stay healthy through his first three seasons. He added muscle this off-season to help prepare for 2023 campaign.

"You think I wanted to build all this muscle? Nah," Tagovailoa said in sending a verbal message to the ESPN analyst. "To some extent, I wanted to be a little lighter.

"There is a mixture of things people don't understand or know about that are talked about that go on behind the scenes. I'd appreciate it if you kept my name out of your mouth."

The Dolphins will face the Jacksonville Jaguars in their final preseason game at 7 p.m. EDT Saturday in Jacksonville, Fla. They will open the season against the Los Angeles Chargers at 4:25 p.m. Sept. 10 in Inglewood, Calif.