Mike McDaniel speaks about Tua Tagovailoa's future with the Dolphins
Mike McDaniel recapped the Miami Dolphins’ loss to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday in the Super Wild Card Playoff game, but also reflected on Tua Tagovailoa’s future with the team.
Tagovailoa didn’t play in the game because he could not make it out of the concussion protocol steps.
“We all see Tua as the leader of this team,” McDaniel said, per Joe Schad. “He’s a great young player. I spent 6 months trying to convince people he’s good. This is a challenging time for him. His health is of primary importance. I’d be a fool to not embrace him when he’s healthy and ready to go.”
Tagovailoa’s health and future in football will be a major debate of the NFL offseason, as it has been for much of the 2022 season.
Many current and former players have shared concerns for his long-term health after his second confirmed concussion of the season. A third incident was believed by many to be a concussion even though the Dolphins described it as a back injury. That came against the Buffalo Bills, but the confirmed concussions came against the Cincinnati Bengals and Green Bay Packers.
Tua should take a page out of the Troy Aikman handbook and quit while he can still think.
it’s unfortunately really looking like a situation of, ‘what he could have been.’ put tua’s ’18 and ’19 stats against anyone in the history of cfb. two bad injuries and one of which was career threatening to go a long with his unfortunate string of concussions in the league…and here we are.
whatever ultimately happens, it was quite a site to watch him college
Great college football player. Could have been great in the NFL if he had the frame and durability. I just hope the competitor in him doesn’t take over. He needs to retire. Watching his head bounce off turf like a basketball 5+ times this year was tough.
Tua should retire while he can still have a normal rest of his life. He’s made more than enough money to live the rest of his life comfortably.
Tua was a great Quarterback for the Tide. He was fragile but we had an
O-line that did a good job protecting him. The injuries take a toll on every player but his concussions that continue to happen should be a real wake-up call to retire. But athletes always want to be on a team and compete with the best. Hopefully he uses common sense about his future in football.