Dolphins’ Austin Jackson ‘Crushed’ for Tua Tagovailoa After Concussion vs. Bills
Scott Polacek@@ScottPolacekFeatured Columnist IVSeptember 13, 2024
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Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Austin Jackson was one of the players nearest to the action when quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered the third confirmed concussion of his career during Thursday’s game against the Buffalo Bills, and he was concerned with his teammate’s wellbeing in the aftermath.
“Crushed. I hate to see him like that,” Jackson said, per ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques. “Even with his history already with that type of stuff, I hate to see it. I hate that it was him rushing out the pocket. Wish I could get that back for all of us. I could have been better.”
The injury happened when a scrambling Tagovailoa went head first into Bills safety Damar Hamlin.
The quarterback immediately went into a fencing position, and Jackson said he could tell his teammate “wasn’t there all the way” from his vantage point on the field. Ultimately, Tagovailoa walked off the field and to the locker room under his own power but only after he was evaluated by trainers.
While the Alabama product didn’t miss a game last season, he suffered multiple concussions during the 2022 campaign.
He was hospitalized from one that came against the Cincinnati Bengals, and a later one he suffered against the Green Bay Packers ended his season. Despite suffering the concussion, he remained in the game against the Packers because the extent of his injury wasn’t known until the aftermath.
That was all the more notable considering a hit Tagovailoa suffered earlier that season against the Bills led to the NFL altering its concussion policy. He remained in the contest against Buffalo but suffered the troubling concussion against the Bengals just four days later.
Miami has nine days until its next game on Sept. 22 against the Seattle Seahawks. Skylar Thompson will likely be the starting quarterback in that one if Tagovailoa is not medically cleared to play.
