Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is finally taking steps in the right direction with regards to his recent thumb injury. There is still no finality on his playing status for their upcoming tilt against the Cincinnati Bengals but there is growing optimism that he might make an appearance under center in Week 13.

As per ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler, the rookie gunslinger already saw reps in practice but so did veteran playmaker Ryan Fitzpatrick who will be leaned on to take over the playmaking duties in the event that Tagovailoa will be deemed unavailable to suit up on Sunday.

“Dealing with a thumb injury, they have put a cast on his thumb, one of those support things,” ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler said during Saturday morning's appearance on SportsCenter. “He was able to hand off the ball and throw with it in practice. Feeling good though most-likely a gametime decision because Brian Flores feels good about Ryan Fitzpatrick playing. He took a lot of reps as well. They don’t want to push this for Tua.

The Dolphins are taking the situation with precaution and making sure that the first-year pro will not further aggravate his injury once he steps on the field again.

“If he was a veteran or had played on that thumb injury before and gutted it out, maybe they’d put him out there. Good chance he plays, but they want to make sure he’s feeling good.”

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Tagovailoa already sat out their most recent encounter against the New York Jets where Fitzpatrick handled the reins under center. He generated 257 passing yards on a 24-of-39 completion along with two scored touchdowns which resulted in a 20-3 lopsided win by the Dolphins.

Despite having two quarterbacks rotating in the position due to different circumstances, the Dolphins still managed to continue on their promising run and hold a 7-4 record to nab second place in the AFC East. With or without Tua Tagovailoa, grabbing a victory against the Joe Burrow-less Bengals will ultimately tighten the Dolphins' grip on a coveted playoff seat heading to the crucial stages of the regular season.