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Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was hurt in Thursday’s 31-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills, going down after a hard hit to the head and being taken off the field by the team’s medical staff.
Tagovailoa was hurt during a third-quarter run with the Dolphins in the red zone, colliding hard with Bills safety Damar Hamlin after scrambling for a first down. ESPN reported that Tagovailoa was confirmed to have suffered a concussion, raising fears for a quarterback with a history of head injuries.
Tagovailoa was replaced by veteran quarterback Skylar Thompson, who had previously filled in for Tagovailoa after a concussion and started a playoff game against the Bills in 2023.
Fans, Players Send Prayers to Tua Tagovailoa
The injury drew reactions from many across the NFL, including Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes who shared a series of prayer emoji.
Many fans also expressed fears for the quarterback’s long-term future. As Bleacher Report’s Adam Wells noted, Tagovailoa has suffered other head injuries throughout his NFL career.
“Tagovailoa suffered two diagnosed concussions throughout the 2022 season that kept him out of action for four games,” Wells wrote. “One of his concussions occurred in a Week 16 loss against the Green Bay Packers, but he played the entire game and it wasn’t revealed until the next day he was in concussion protocol.”
Wells added that Tagovailoa even underwent special training this offseason to better protect against head injuries.
“In an attempt to protect himself from head injuries next season, Tagovailoa said he started incorporating jiu-jitsu into his training regimen during the offseason because it teaches him ‘how to fall and try to react throughout those positions that I’m getting thrown around in,’ ” Wells wrote.
As ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques noted, one of Tagovailoa’s most high-profile head injuries came against the Bills in a 2022 game. Tagovailoa hit the back of his head on the ground and stumbled when jogging back to the team’s huddle. The team described it as a back injury, leading to controversy and a league investigation.
“The NFL and NFLPA opened a joint investigation into how Tagovailoa was handled, leading to the NFLPA exercising its right to fire the unaffiliated neurological consultant who cleared Tagovailoa to return to the game,” Louis-Jacques reported. “The NFL also altered its concussion policy to include an ataxia clause — allowing a spotter to have players removed from the game if they show certain concussion symptoms.”
The Dolphins just made a major commitment to Tagovailoa this offseason, signing him to a four-year, $212.4 million extension in July.
Tua Tagovailoa Struggled Before Injury
Prior to his injury, Tagovailoa completed 17-of-25 passes for 145 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions against an aggressive Bills defense.
The last interception came in the third quarter with the Dolphins trailing 24-10 and looking for a spark. After being pressured by Bills defensive end AJ Epenesa, Tagovailoa lofted the ball toward the sideline where it was picked off by Bills cornerback Ja’Marcus Ingram and returned for a touchdown.
The teams battled for the division last year, with the Bills taking the title with a win in Miami in the season finale.
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