Report: Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa Placed on IR After Concussion; Out at Least 4 Weeks

Timothy Rapp@@TRappaRTFeatured Columnist IVSeptember 17, 2024

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The Miami Dolphins are reportedly placing quarterback Tua Tagovailoa on injured reserve after he suffered a concussion in the team’s Week 2 loss to the Buffalo Bills.

NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport reported Tuesday the decision was made “in order to give him ample time to progress through the stages of concussion protocol and meet with outside neurologists.”

That means Tagovailoa cannot return until the Week 8 game against the Arizona Cardinals at the earliest, although Garafolo explained “the Dolphins are committed to placing no timeline on him as he works through a deliberate process and eventual return to play.”

Injuries have yet again become the central storyline of Tagovailoa’s season after he left the Week 2 game with a concussion, the third time he’s been diagnosed with a concussion in the past three seasons. This time around, it appeared as though he may have been temporarily knocked unconscious on the field after a collision with Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin.

“Crushed. I hate to see him like that,” Dolphins offensive lineman Austin Jackson told reporters at the time. “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.”

In the 2022 season, Tagovailoa hit his head on the ground against the Bills and was seen stumbling back to the huddle and left the game briefly, though he was eventually cleared to return with what was deemed a back injury. The situation quickly earned widespread attention, with speculation that a concussion went undiagnosed, and the NFL fired the unaffiliated neurological consultant who cleared his return to play.

Four days later, Tagovailoa was knocked unconscious in a game against the Cincinnati Bengals and diagnosed with a concussion. He missed two games before returning to action, only to suffer another one in a late December game against the Green Bay Packers. The Dolphins shut him down for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs.

His concussion against the Bills this season led to public discussions about whether Tagovailoa should consider retirement, though reporting at the time suggested he had no plans to do so. But there is going to be an added layer of scrutiny and attention, however, given his history.

Skylar Thompson is expected to start in his absence.