The Miami Dolphins face an uphill climb to get into the playoffs and, according to NFL.com, there’s only a 9 percent chance they’ll pull it off. Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa says that’s his fault.
“I feel like this has a lot to do with myself obviously putting myself in harm’s way in the second game, going down – basically leaving my guys out to dry,” Tagovailoa told reporters Wednesday. “Anyone can have an opinion about, ‘It’s football. It’s this, it’s that.’ I do take that to heart as well and still don’t want to do that to my guys again.”
After earning a Week 1 win, Tagovailoa was concussed in the second half of a loss to the Buffalo Bills. During his subsequent injured reserve stint, the Dolphins scored only 10 points per game and lost three of their four games without their starting quarterback.
The Dolphins lost two more following Tagovailoa’s return, albeit with much better offensive production. Then the team won three straight before its Thanksgiving setback against the Green Bay Packers. Altogether, the team is 4-4 with Tagovailoa in the starting lineup and 1-3 without him.
While Tagovailoa could’ve protected himself more on the play that caused his injury, it’s also tough to heap too much blame on the quarterback, who was trying to make a play for his team.
The Dolphins’ deficiency at backup quarterback, which was a glaring issue throughout August, was left unaddressed by the team. It also wasn’t Tagovailoa, who said he was symptom-free a day after his concussion, who made the decision to go on injured reserve.
Ultimately, the team’s abysmal stretch without Tagovailoa could be the reason the Dolphins miss the playoffs. It’s hard to blame the quarterback for that, though.
