The message reached Mike McDaniel from Steve Young in early spring, 2022.

When you coach Tua Tagovailoa, make sure he feels his left-handedness is an advantage, not a flaw or annoyance.

In 2005, Young became the first left-handed quarterback selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He is one of only 33 to have ever played in the NFL. Tagovailoa became No. 32 in 2020 when the Miami Dolphins drafted him fifth overall.

When McDaniel took over as Miami’s head coach two years later, he’d never considered what it would be like to coach a lefty — but he did know that Tagovailoa’s overall confidence was shot. The quarterback later revealed that during the depth of his struggles over his first two NFL seasons, he used to look at himself in the mirror and ask, “Do I suck?”

So McDaniel put together a reel that spanned hundreds of Tagovailoa’s plays from practices and games, clipping together throws and decisions he believed could help eliminate negative self-talk from his quarterback. “It was in the process of making the tape for Tua, to present to him ‘this isn’t just lip service,’ to present to him why he is extraordinary and what I’m excited about,” McDaniel told The Athletic this spring, that he noticed something. Tagovailoa’s handedness kept tripping him up.

As McDaniel cut together clip after clip, he began to focus on Tagovailoa’s mechanics instead of the result of the throws, and somewhere in the middle of the film he eventually presented to the quarterback, it clicked. It was as if he were watching Tagovailoa through a mirror — he could see him throw the way he could see right-handed quarterbacks throw.

McDaniel began to daydream. If the coach felt his own brain hesitate ever-so-slightly over the left-handed delivery, would defenders feel the same? Could play formations, blocking and route combinations all accentuate a lefty? Was there a way to turn a visual anomaly into a schematic advantage?

Young knew what McDaniel knows now: Understanding how Tagovailoa throws could allow McDaniel to design an offense that takes advantage of how the ball comes out of his quarterback’s hand. It could also be a way for McDaniel to show Tagovailoa: I like you for you.

“What Steve learned is that (being left-handed) felt more like an inconvenience to all parties involved while he was playing, which didn’t help his confidence,” said McDaniel. “He was big on, ‘no, this is a resource, tool or competitive advantage,’ seeing it through that lens.

“Not only was it good advice to approach things with Tua like that, but it was factual.”

A few things naturally change for an offense if the quarterback is left-handed. Some of that irritates teams to the point that many have historically avoided lefties altogether.

For example, a quarterback’s “blind side” (the side of the field he turns his back to during a dropback) switches from the left to the right. The right tackle becomes the blind-side protector on passing plays instead of the left tackle.

Austin Jackson played left tackle after being drafted with Miami’s second first-round pick in 2020 but moved to the right side when McDaniel took over as head coach. “Your mechanics literally change (to) opposite legs,” Jackson said. “My left leg had to become my push leg, my right leg had to become my ‘catch/anchor’ leg that kind of keeps my balance.”

As he made the change, Jackson’s right leg was significantly stronger than his left. His left hip was strong but way tighter. The Dolphins’ strength-and-conditioning staff installed special programming to rebuild both hips and legs for his new role.

Pass catchers also have to adjust to a southpaw thrower. The ball spins the opposite direction — counter-clockwise — coming out of a left-handed quarterback’s hand, and some receivers have said the spin feels strange and takes some getting used to. Some left-handers’ throws can tend to fishtail at the end of deeper balls, though velocity helps dull the difference. Dolphins coaches and receivers say Tagovailoa doesn’t have that issue.

“It makes it a lot easier to live in a left-handed world when your quarterback has enough pronation, enough spin, that no one even notices,” McDaniel said.

Two years after a head-coaching change altered his career trajectory, Tua Tagovailoa signed a $212 million extension with the Dolphins this July. (Megan Briggs / Getty Images)

Oregon Ducks offensive coordinator Will Stein has become a “lefty-whisperer” of sorts in the college ranks. His starter heading into 2024 is left-handed transfer Dillon Gabriel, and Stein previously coached all-conference lefty Frank Harris at UTSA while working with offensive coordinator Barry Lunney, a former left-handed quarterback himself.

The Ducks have workshopped a type of passing system they call “mid-game” that combines elements of quick-game footwork and corresponding short, fast route concepts with more traditional longer dropback route pairings. They can employ both on one play, splitting the field into sides or even multiple sections based on the quarterback’s progression.

“It’s kind of a new way of thinking because it does get defenders’ eyes in spots they are not used to,” said Stein. “It’s quick game on one side and dropback on the other. It’s something we have done a lot of last year and in the spring. … I think you’re gonna see it show up a lot more in professional football.”

With a left-handed quarterback, the sides of the concepts can flip — and therein lies an additional challenge for defenders. A left-handed quarterback’s progressions on any passing play are inverted, so his eyes sweep the field for his receivers in the opposite direction as a right-handed quarterback.

Stein’s experiences in the recruiting cycle and at all-star events have led him to believe that more lefties are on the way. Top high school quarterbacks like Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele and Deuce Knight impressed coaches and scouts at this summer’s Elite 11 in Manhattan Beach, Calif. Modern JUGS machines (the apparatus that shoots footballs out for receivers to catch) now even have a “left-handed” setting.

“There’s plenty of them,” Stein said. “I think the old ‘fear of lefties,’ maybe it’s going by the wayside. … I’ve been around guys that have refused to coach lefties, refused to recruit them. It’s kind of wild, I never really understood the logic behind it.”

Of course, modern NFL defenses are savvy enough to adjust to the ball coming out of a quarterback’s left hand over the course of a game. Most defenders say it only takes about a quarter or so to get used to a lefty.

McDaniel is very clear: He’s not looking for some “Eureka!” moment that changes the sport for left-handed throwers. He just wants to make defenders hesitate — just a little — and maximize production on plays where that happens. It’s why he sought so much speed in his skill players, who are the fastest in the NFL. Against that kind of speed, a fraction of a second’s hesitation could mean death for a defense.

NFL hashmarks are closer to the middle of the field, with wide swaths of grass on either side. Teams that use motion to change formation strength can manipulate the space on one side or the other before the ball is even snapped. Over time, McDaniel realized how many defensive rules are predicated on the quarterback throwing with his right hand.

The Dolphins rank among NFL leaders in using motions and shifts, some of which create new formations that force mismatches with “right side” defenders who suddenly face a flipped play. Rollouts and bootlegs flip sides, too, and the edge defender accustomed to defending those can find himself out of position, creating a natural mismatch for the less-experienced player on the other side.

“What (defensive end) gets used to defending boots the best? Well, the one on the rollout to the right side,” McDaniel said. “OK, well, now you can create schemes to out-flank the defense; to be on the perimeter … and change the pocket. And you’re having players that aren’t used to defending the primary throwing hand of a left-handed quarterback — the (defensive end) on that side — when you fake the boot and go out here, he’s not used to playing (that).”

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McDaniel wondered how Miami’s speed might work in combination with Tagovailoa’s inverted progression, particularly against zone defenders who use visual keys to determine their drops.

The Dolphins also run their own version of the “mid-game” that Stein described at Oregon. The skill players in Miami’s “Chevy” series are so fast that Tagovailoa can use footwork and timing that make it look like he is running quick-game concepts — to the opposite side of the field than usual — before he gets the ball to a receiver on a deeper route.

“Inherently it’s going to hit (defenders) in live football differently, and they are going to be a hair, a fraction … later to react, which is the ultimate advantage of offense,” McDaniel said.

Los Angeles Rams safety Kam Curl, who prepared for Tagovailoa and the Dolphins in 2023 while with the Washington Commanders, said the biggest in-the-moment adjustment a defense needed to make against Tagovailoa’s handedness came when the Dolphins ran a true quick game. The vulnerable short parts of the field flipped sides, so the defensive assignments had to change.

“A right-handed quarterback will catch it — boom to his (right),” Curl said. “But a left-handed quarterback, he’s mainly going to throw it to his (left).”

And against a left-handed quarterback, the “tells” certain defenders get during a right-handed throw aren’t available. On standard strong-side formations with extra targets on a quarterback’s right side, nickel cornerbacks have to align to their matchup and then aren’t able to read a lefty’s eyes the way they can see a right-handed thrower’s. Instead, they end up looking at the back of Tagovailoa’s helmet as he opens his throw to the opposite side.

“I can feel him, but he can’t see,” Tagovailoa said.

Tua Tagovailoa threw for a league-best 4,624 yards last season with 29 touchdown passes and completed 69.3 percent of his throws. (Jim Rassol / USA Today)

Preparing a scout team for a left-handed quarterback is perhaps the biggest impact on an opponent, especially non-divisional teams that may see a lefty once a year or less. Curl recalled that Washington’s scout team quarterback had to reorder his progressions from back-to-front when presenting looks for the starting defense in practices ahead of the game against Miami last year.

“I just felt like everything was just flipped to the opposite side, every read and stuff like that,” said Curl, “Just trying to get that down in one week? It was a little challenging.”

McDaniel hopes to make the week of game preparation for defensive coordinators just a little harder.

“Anytime you can’t prepare for something during the week 100 percent so that one element of game day is new, it’s really hard for the opposing team,” he said.

So if the way Tagovailoa throws the ball causes even a fraction of hesitation, or if how McDaniel schemes formations and plays to the opposite side allows him to capitalize before a defense adjusts, he’ll take it.

“If you would have asked me before I started this job about a left-handed quarterback, I would have nothing to say,” said McDaniel. “Through working with Tua in particular, this is stuff that is super tangible that I know to be a competitive advantage.

“If I could clone a human being and I had the choice of primary hand, and if it was the same human being at quarterback, I would go left-handed just because of those factors — if they were an elite thrower, a pure passer.”

Maybe McDaniel and Tagovailoa will find a genuine new edge for left-handed quarterbacks, maybe they won’t. There’s a larger point at work. Entering their third season together, the two have become collaborators, “ideas” people with genuine, mutual trust in each other.

When Tagovailoa literally wondered, “Do I suck?” and McDaniel responded with a load of tape that he felt argued otherwise, he bought into everything about his quarterback, and he wanted Tagovailoa to know it. Adjusting to his throwing hand was simply the entry point.

In late July, Tagovailoa signed a franchise-record four-year, $212 million contract extension. He said he heard from “several birdies” around the facility that McDaniel advocated for the deal with the front office and team ownership. It further spoke to their bond, which started with the coach wanting to better understand how his quarterback threw and how to build his confidence.

Steve Young was right back in 2022. Or left.

(Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; photos: Mike Stobe, Ryan Kang / Getty Images)

International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach faced more questions about the gender eligibility controversy involving two boxers competing at the 2024 Paris Olympics in what was his final press conference before the Games conclude this weekend. 

Bach, who was first elected in 2013, did not sway from the IOC’s stance on the eligibility concerns surrounding boxers Imane Khelif of Algeria and Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan when speaking to the media Friday. 

“This is not a question of inclusion. That’s never played a role in all this,” Bach said. “This is a question of justice.”

The scrutiny began when the International Boxing Association, which the IOC withdrew its recognition of in 2023, put out a statement last month about the two boxers’ disqualification from the International Boxing Association World Championships in 2023. The IBA’s president said at the time that Khelif and Lin were disqualified after they were found to have “XY chromosomes.”

But the IOC has maintained that both athletes meet the committee’s eligibility concerns. 

“Women have the right to participate in women’s [events], and we will not rely on — which test? I have been seeing a transcript of this very interesting press conference of this organization (IBA) where it was not even clear which tests have been performed, which results they have been produced. And, anyway, what was reported there is not up to science,” Bach continued. 

“I have explained before the issues we have. It is not as easy as some may in these cultural wars may now want to portray it that XX or XY is the clear distinction between the men and women. This is scientifically not true anymore. And, therefore, these two are women. And they have the right to participate in the women’s competition. This has nothing to do with inclusion in any way.” 

Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee, speaks to the media at a press conference on day 14 of the Olympic Games in Paris Aug. 9, 2024.  (George Mattock/Getty Images)

ALGERIAN BOXER IMANE KHELIF WINS OLYMPIC GOLD MEDAL BY UNANIMOUS DECISION

Bach said the IOC abandoned genetic gender testing in 1999, and under the new systems in place, the committee’s stance remains “very clear.”

“Women must be allowed to take part in women’s competitions. And the two [boxers] are women,” he said.

When asked if the IOC would be willing to review its policies ahead of the 2028 Games in Los Angeles, Bach said the organization would be open to it. 

“That’s what we have said from the very beginning. If somebody is presenting us a scientifically solid system – how to identify man and woman – we’re the first ones to do it. We do not like this uncertainty. We do not like it for the overall situation for nobody. So, we would be more than pleased to look into it. But what is not possible is that somebody saying that ‘this is not a woman’ just by looking at somebody or by falling prey to a defamation campaign by not a credible organization with highly political interests.” 

The IOC put out a statement Aug. 1 clarifying that all boxers competing in the women’s events “comply with the competition’s eligibility and entry regulations, as well as all applicable medical regulations set by the Paris 2024 Boxing Unit (PBU).

Lin Yu-ting competes in the women’s 57-kilogram semifinal match against Esra Yildiz Kahraman of Turkey on day 12 of the Olympic Games in Paris Aug. 7, 2024. (Richard Pelham/Getty Images)

“As with previous Olympic boxing competitions, the gender and age of the athletes are based on their passport,” the statement added. 

Bach’s comments came just hours before Khelif won a gold medal in the women’s 66-kilogram division after defeating the reigning welterweight world champion, Yang Liu of China, by unanimous decision. 

Lin will compete for gold in the women’s featherweight division Saturday. 

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter. 

OXNARD, Calif. — The Dallas Cowboys remain stuck in an extraordinarily complex situation with three of their stars’ contractual status.

Quarterback Dak Prescott, wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and linebacker Micah Parsons are all up for new deals, though they’re all in very different phases of negotiations with the team. However, if the Cowboys extend all three, they will be rostering three players who will be among the highest paid — if not the highest — at their position simultaneously.

All three negotiations are interconnected, with the Cowboys having to be mindful of the cap gymnastics that will become necessary to keep the trio in Dallas long-term. After spending time this week at the Cowboys’ training camp, here’s the intel we have been able to gather from league sources:

First, Prescott has had a tremendous camp, and he dazzled during the Monday practice session. The Cowboys have been impressed by the quarterback’s ability to block out the business side when it comes to his own performance.

But now to the business side. Prescott is playing in the final season of his four-year, $160 million contract, and there’s a unique challenge with his extension talks. Due to void years and a prior restructure, Prescott is set to earn $29 million in cash this season while incurring a cap hit of about $55 million.

Because an extension would continue to push that dead money into future years, it’s a far greater hurdle to cross from a cap perspective. It’s also unique. Prescott is among 19 quarterbacks who make north of $30 million annually, and none have signed a second big-money extension with their team. That’s important to note because of the dead-money factor.

And among the 16 quarterbacks averaging at least $40 million annually, the 31-year-old Prescott, is one of only four on the other side of 30. While the standard number for a franchise quarterback has ballooned to $50 million over the past year — if not even higher — none of the eight QBs at that number have celebrated a 30th birthday.

That’s not to say that rule won’t be broken in short order. It’s simply an expected negotiating point from the team side.

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For Prescott, he’s seen quarterbacks with lesser statistical resumes soar past his contractual value, and the new standard is now $55 million annually. Because Prescott’s timing is so advantageous, he’s been asking for north of that number, which is his well-earned negotiating right.

From a cap perspective, it would actually make more financial sense for the Cowboys to allow Prescott’s contract to expire after the season, eliminating the $26 million in dead money from future books. From a logical perspective, however, such a strategy could backfire because the temptation of the open market and the QB-desperate teams lurking would pounce with offers that could shatter historical benchmarks.

Prescott knows that. So, while he’d surely appreciate something closer to market value in cash this season, he recognizes the bank account will be just fine with a little patience. Remember, he’s been through all of this before.

The Cowboys badly want to keep Prescott through the duration of another long-term contract. It’s why they’ve been trying to execute an extension before free agency becomes more of a temptation.

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Also, the idea of starting over at the position doesn’t appeal to an organization that has won 36 regular-season games over the past three seasons, second to the Kansas City Chiefs (37). It hasn’t translated to playoff success, but the Cowboys are contenders due to their overall talent. Prescott only aids that stance.

At this point, it doesn’t appear the Cowboys and Prescott are close on an extension, and the cap dynamics and leverage points explain why that’s been the case.

This one feels closer. Lamb and the Cowboys have made progress, but it’s still shy of the point where the sides are assuming a guaranteed resolution.

Lamb is holding out and has informed the Cowboys he won’t report to camp without a new deal. He is currently operating under the terms of his rookie contract’s fifth-year option, which is worth $17.991 million.

The collective-bargaining agreement calls for the Cowboys to fine Lamb $40,000 per day in camp, but they are likely to rescind those fines upon the execution of a new contract. An elimination of fines is only permissible because Lamb is still on his rookie contract.

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Last season, Lamb led the league with 135 receptions, finished second with 1,749 yards and tied for third with 12 touchdown catches. The 25-year-old, who was the No. 17 pick in the 2020 draft, has improved his production profile in every season of his career.

Justin Jefferson ($35 million annually) and A.J. Brown ($32 million) recently reset the market, and there’s no question Lamb’s number would also exceed $30 million annually, which would make him the fifth member of that club.

The discrepancy is where Lamb should fall between Jefferson’s deal and Brown’s contract. Jefferson is widely viewed as the best receiver in the league, and he got his contract with an organization that has a quarterback on a rookie deal. Brown, another physically dominant receiver, got his deal after quarterback Jalen Hurts signed his massive pact. The other pair of $30 million wideouts, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Tyreek Hill, are also working with $50 million quarterbacks.

The Cowboys seem to be reluctant to hit Jefferson’s APY with Lamb, so the concession could be the guaranteed money. Jefferson’s four-year, $140 million contract includes about $88.7 million fully guaranteed (roughly 63 percent), while Brown’s three-year, $96 million extension includes $51 million fully guaranteed (roughly 53 percent).

Eying the two contracts, is a four-year deal worth $30 million to $32 million annually including 63 percent in guarantees palatable?

Those numbers might make the most sense. Knock down the APY and kick up the guarantees to find a compromise, and it’d help with the Prescott negotiations. That’s why there are reasons to believe Lamb’s contract could be the first to be agreed upon.

The defensive chess piece’s contract is on the back-burner for now, but it’s been on the Cowboys’ minds for a year. He’s in the fourth season of his rookie contract, so he’s now eligible for an extension, but the Cowboys have also exercised his fifth-year option for 2025.

Understandably, the Cowboys have more pressing business with Prescott and Lamb before diving all the way into the Parsons pool. But there could be a significant cost in waiting, because Parsons’ price tag could rise, especially if he delivers another healthy, productive season.

Parsons, 25, has been incredibly consistent with 40.5 sacks through three seasons, but his athleticism as a second-level linebacker has made him unique. The Cowboys won’t be playing the semantic game of treating Parsons as a space linebacker, which would drive down his value.

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San Francisco 49ers edge rusher Nick Bosa set the bar last year with a five-year, $170 million deal including $88 million fully guaranteed. That $34 million annual benchmark will be the target point, though the league seems to still view Bosa as the superior player.

But again, if Parsons stays healthy, he’ll once again be on the short list of Defensive Player of the Year candidates and should be within his right to ask for Bosa money, especially after a couple years of cap inflation.

That’s just something the Cowboys are going to have to stomach down the road. With Prescott a more pressing matter and Lamb out of camp, the organization must prioritize accordingly.

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It’s not a stretch to envision a scenario where the Cowboys eventually employ the league’s highest-paid quarterback, a top-two receiver and the highest-paid defensive player. But even with concessions from the players, they’re still looking at premium-priced players at each position, and therein lies the challenge ahead with keeping this star-studded roster together.

(Photo of CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons: Richard Rodriguez / Getty Images)