Tagovailoa played dangerously during Dolphins-Steelers win; says he “shouldn’t be”
The Miami QB played in his first game in three weeks since sustaining concussion, and spoke of his performance against Steelers on Sunday
Tua Tagovailoa just can’t get enough.
The Miami Dolphins’ quarterback, who suffered an ugly concussion on Sept. 29 and missed a few weeks in the NFL, returned to the starting lineup in Week 7 against the Pittsburgh Steelers on ‘Sunday Night Football,’ and it was not easy to watch him.
Tagovailoa’s tenacity and balls-to-the-walls attitude against the Steelers this weekend helped Miami score a 16-10 win over Pittsburgh Sunday, but also raised a question of whether the quarterback is being careful enough in his first game back from his concussion. A concussion that brought up a whole new discussion of the NFL’s concussion protocol…
Related: Tagovailoa’s concussion changed the NFL’s protocols
How did Tagovailoa play in first game back?
Not carefully.
In an attempt to gain extra yards, the 24-year-old tried to bulldoze an opposing defender twice while lowering his head. In the first quarter, he gained four yards on second and 9 after a scramble to his right where he was wrestled to the ground by a linebacker. Two plays later, Miami kicked a field goal.
The other uncomfortable moment saw Tagovailoa lower his shoulder into a defender on a 7-yard run that ended one yard short of a first down. The Dolphins were then forced to punt.
Tua finished 21 of 35 for 261 yards and a touchdown, helping the Dolphins improve to 4-2.
In response to the raised eyebrows after the win, Tagovailoa said he “shouldn’t be doing” some of those things.
Tagovailoa: “I wasn’t trying to be Superman”
“Obviously, I came to the sideline after those plays,” Tagovailoa said postgame.
The quarterback also said that he “wasn’t trying to be Superman or a superhero out there,” but rather get forward progress.
The Hawaii native, however, proved to make a play for his team whenever and however he can, without letting a traumatic experience affect his performance.
It will just take NFL audiences some time to keep both eyes open while watching the quarterback do what he does best: play.