Miami Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa asserted that no medical experts encouraged him to retire from the NFL after sustaining a series of concussions – but the star quarterback came dangerously close to suffering yet another head injury Monday night.
Back in Week 2, Tagovailoa was seriously concussed after lowering his head into the chest of Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin – the third concussion he’s been diagnosed with in just two years. The 26-year-old was subsequently sidelined for the Dolphins’ ensuing four games, eventually returning in a 28-27 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.
Despite receiving fervent calls from fans and pundits alike to hang up the cleats, Tagovailoa revealed that all the doctors he visited with told him that it’s safe to continue playing. “They would just ask me how I felt about everything, and from there it was just testing, testing and continued questions.
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“And it was sort of like, ‘Alright, here’s the information we have,’” Tagovailoa told ESPN’s Jeff Darlington in an interview that aired prior to Monday’s kickoff. “If they were to tell me that I couldn’t play, I would have definitely taken that into consideration, but there were no talks like that.
“It never stuck in my mind that I was ever thinking of retiring. Whether the doctors told me that or not, it would’ve just been information for me. With what I was doing working out week-to-week, I’m in here everyday. It’s like a no-brainer, what I’m I working hard for then?”
Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel expressed a similar sentiment, telling reporters last month: “The most important thing is that, you know, for anybody that’s concerned enough to ask, he met with a litany, a laundry list, a long list of medical experts, and zero of them recommended that he shouldn’t play football.
“So that means 100 percent of them were supporting the continued journey.”
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Tua Tagovailoa came close to suffering another serious head injury against the Rams on Monday (
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Rather than retiring from the sport he loves, Tagovailoa is determined to continue playing – even with the inherent risks that his decision poses. “What I don’t want to be known for is the poster boy for concussions. That’s for sure,” he declared.
On Monday, Tagovailoa suffered an injury scare that likely made Dolphins fans hold their breath. During the second quarter of Miami’s game against the Los Angeles Rams, the signal-caller threw an interception which linebacker Christian Rozeboom returned 30 yards down the sideline. In the process of tackling him, he received a knee to head and fell hard to the turf.
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Taking to social media, fans expressed concern for Tagovailoa’s wellbeing on the heels of the dangerous hit. “Tua Tagovailoa going for his fifth concussion… Get him the guardian cap now,” one X user wrote, with another adding: “I hope Tua Tagovailoa stays healthy for the rest of his career and life, but I think it should be a requirement for him to wear the guardian cap.”
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