Late in the 3rd quarter on Thursday night, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa scrambled to pick up a first down, and as he began to dive forward to make sure he picked up the yardage needed on the 4th and 4 play, a collision ensued with Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin. At first glance, you wouldn't have thought that the hit from Hamlin would've resulted in a serious injury to Tagovailoa. But as Damar Hamlin knows all too well, it's not always the knockout hits that turn out to be the costliest.
Here lies the problem, or as ESPN analyst and former NFL cornerback Ryan Clark put it, the scarier reality about all of this: this is Tua Tagovailoa's third concussion of his NFL career, and this hit was arguably the least devastating of the three. It was a borderline routine play that resulted in the Dolphins training staff rushing out onto the field to tend to their $212 million quarterback.
It's sad that this is where we are, but we've arrived at the point where it's time to for Tua Tagovailoa to take some time to think about what's at stake if he continues to play the game of football. Sure, this is an inherently dangerous sport, and in 2024 especially, every single player who ever steps onto an NFL field is at least loosely aware of the risks they are taking and the toll that this sport will have on both their mind and their body.
On the flip side, when a lifelong dream and a multi-million dollar payday is what you're pursuing, it's a lot easier to look at the risks and the toll and say, “Well, I think it's worth it.” But let's just be clear, nobody should fault Tua Tagovailoa if he looks at this situation and decides it's time to walk away.
Can the Dolphins survive without Tua Tagovailoa?
This is such a trivial question to ponder when the short-term and long-term health of a human being is at stake, but it's the nature of the business, so therefore, I ask again, can the Dolphins survive without Tua Tagovailoa?
The Dolphins won't play again for ten days, next taking the field in Seattle on September 22nd. Even with the extra few days, one would assume — and hope — that the Dolphins would be extremely cautious with Tagovailoa and hold him out for an extended period of time. After their matchup with Seattle, the Dolphins return home to face the Tennessee Titans in Week 4, and then travel to Foxborough to play the New England Patriots in Week 5.
The Dolphins have their bye in Week 6, and then return to the field on Sunday October 20th when they go on the road to play Indianapolis. Out of an abundance of caution, it's possible they could hold off on Tua's return until then… if he decides to return.
When Tua suffered his first concussion with the Dolphins back in Week 4 of the 2022 season, he was held out of Miami's next two games before returning in Week 7. Later in the season, after Tagovailoa entered concussion protocol for the second time, he was held out for the final three weeks of the Dolphins' season.
My sincere hope is that Tua Tagovailoa can eventually return to the field and have a long and successful career without ever suffering another head injury. But that just might not be possible. And if that's the case, maybe it's better we don't see him on a football field again.
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