Tua Tagovailoa will make his return to the starting lineup Sunday, and many will be watching the Miami Dolphins quarterback with bated breath.
After another scary concussion for a player who already considered retirement because of his history of head injuries, there are plenty who are understandably worried that Tagovailoa will take another damaging hit. That includes former Alabama coach Nick Saban, who spent three years coaching Tagovailoa.
“I’m concerned. I want Tua to be safe and healthy and not have a football career that’s going to impact him down the road,” Saban said Friday on The Pat McAfee Show. “This is a medical decision, this not an organizational decision. People will look at him and say ‘Why are they letting him play?’ I think the doctors make that decision and it’s a medical decision.
“For him, it becomes personal then. ‘I really want to play. I’m a competitor. I want to play.’ So he has to make a decision — is the risk-reward from a medical point worth it to you? I think all those things are in play now. If he wants to play — and I’ve talked to him, I know he wants to play, I know what kind of competitor he is — then I’m happy for him that he’s having the opportunity to play. But I also pray for him that he doesn’t have any issues.”
Tagovailoa’s concerning injury history dates back to his days at Alabama where he suffered a concussion, as well as a broken hip and nose, from a hit in 2019. But it was the 2022 season when things boiled over with Tagovailoa suffering two diagnosed concussions — and possibly a third that went undiagnosed — that raised doubts about the passer’s future.
In his first press conference since suffering a concussion in Week 2 against the Buffalo Bills, Tagovailoa dismissed the idea of walking away from football.
“This is what I love to do. This is what makes me happy, and I’m gonna do it. That’s it,” Tagovailoa said.
Tagovailoa is set to return to the starting lineup Sunday in a home game against the Arizona Cardinals.
