Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa entered the NFL’s concussion program just a day after Miami’s loss to the Green Bay Packers on Christmas day.
Tagovailoa remained in concussion protocol and missed the Dolphins’ 23-21 loss to the New England Patriots this past weekend, and the third-year quarterback will remain out as Miami looks to take on the New York Jets to end the season.
In fact, head coach Mike McDaniel recently told the media that he can’t even factor Tagovailoa into Miami’s game plan because right now, the quarterback’s health is the only thing that matters.
“I haven’t even thought about [Tagovailoa’s] playing status. It’s about him getting healthy each and every day,” McDaniel said, per ESPN. “And so I can’t really even factor him into any sort of equation until we’re ready to broach that. It’s just really a situation of, at this point in the week — Monday and Tuesday game prep — I’ll be preparing for both Skylar and Teddy, and then proceed as the week progresses.”
Miami started journeyman Teddy Bridgewater against New England, who threw for 161 yards and a touchdown before leaving the game with a finger injury in the third quarter. Rookie seventh-round pick Skylar Thompson took over for Bridgewater and threw for 104 yards, one touchdown, and an interception.
Tagovailoa has now suffered two concussions this season. The latest apparently didn’t jar him enough to take him out of the game against the Packers, but he entered protocol the very next day. The first was a highly visible concussion on Thursday Night Football — a slam so bad on the back of his head that he had to leave the game via ambulance.
Distressingly enough, McDaniel told the media that medical professionals have told Tagovailoa that he should worry “only about the day that he’s currently in and nothing else”.
“Specifically as mandated, I haven’t had a discussion with Tua about when he’s playing,” McDaniels said. “Because again, the picture was painted very … from his head coach to the player, no timeline has been discussed with intent.”
