Tua Tagovailoa is out indefinitely after suffering at least his second concussion in 2022, Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Wednesday. Teddy Bridgewater is in line to start Sunday against the New England Patriots.
That’s the news.
Our analysis: No matter when (if) he is cleared to return, Tagovailoa should not see the field again before Week 1 of the 2023 season — if even then.
Tua Tagovailoa Injury Update
The long-term health risk is just too great to take any chances at all. Doctors know that. The Dolphins know that — McDaniel, in particular, who was somber and at times shaken during his 15-minute news conference with Miami reporters, knows that.
“Terrible,” McDaniel said when asked what it’s like to see Tua go through yet another significant head injury.
There’s no debating the science at this point. Repeated concussions can be life-altering, even deadly. At just 24 years of age, the prime of Tagovailoa’s life is ahead of him. But what will the time after his prime look like if he continues to suffer brain trauma?
It should not matter one bit that the Dolphins are in the thick of a playoff race. Football considerations are irrelevant to when and if Tagovailoa ever plays again. Tua didn’t entertain thoughts of retirement the last time he was concussed. He should this time around, particularly if doctors express alarm.
Tagovailoa went through a battery of tests and spoke to basically every specialist he could reach after his previous concussion. They told him his scans were clean and there was no long-term health risk to him returning.
It’s unclear at this point if he’s getting the same advice this time around. McDaniel, citing privacy concerns, declined to get into many details on Wednesday. But the tenor of his comments suggested great concern internally about Tagovailoa’s health.
“I’ve been advised by medical professionals that it’s critical that Tua worries only about the day it is and nothing else,” McDaniel said.
Tagovailoa was in the team’s practice facility Wednesday, and he’s feeling better than he did Tuesday, McDaniel said. Beyond that, McDaniel would not entertain hypotheticals. He didn’t want to get into when Tagovailoa might play again or if he definitely will play again this winter even if he clears protocol.
“His health is the first, foremost, and only priority,” he said.
Tua Tagovailoa’s History Of Head Injuries
Tagovailoa’s health has been one of the dominant stories of the 2022 NFL season.
The Dolphins’ decision to clear Tua to return to Miami’s Week 3 game against the Bills despite him showing gross motor instability following a blow to the head triggered a revision of the league’s concussion protocol. Tua would have been barred from return had the current rules applied then.
Tagovailoa was also allowed to play just four days later — with disastrous consequences. There was no question whether he suffered a concussion against the Bengals. He was immobilized and hospitalized after a frightening hit.
That injury kept Tagovailoa out of the next two games. He avoided injury for the next two months. But that changed on Sunday when Tagovailoa suffered a head injury at some point.
The NFL said Tuesday that Tagovailoa showed no concussion symptoms during the game, and the Dolphins were compliant with all health and safety protocols.
Was he cognitively impaired during the second half? It’s hard to say for certain, but it’s instructive that he threw three interceptions in the second half — after throwing five all season up to that point.
The Dolphins don’t know for sure when Tua suffered the concussion, but McDaniel quickly realized something was wrong with his quarterback on Monday when he reviewed the game film.
Tagovailoa had “inconsistencies” on film that were alarming, McDaniel said, and when Tagovailoa reported symptoms to doctors on Monday, it was clear he had suffered a concussion.