Tagovailoa, who turned 26 in March, has dealt with several injuries throughout his football career, starting in college, each layering more concern about whether his body can keep up with his astonishing ability to play the game. As things stand, he's is much closer to retirement than he is to completing the four-year, $212.4 million contract extension with Miami in July.
To understand how we got to a place where Tua Tagovailoa is less the face of a franchise than of the NFL's concussion protocols, let's take a step back and run through a timeline of his concussion-related injuries.
Before we do, though, bear in mind that when it comes to documentation concerning athletes' medical issues, it's difficult to say with certainty whether Tagovailoa's first concussion happened in the National Football League, as has been widely reported, or in college, or even earlier than that. Even now, some press reports fail to distinguish between "head injuries" (a term medical professionals use to denote fractured skulls and the like) and "brain injuries" (a category that includes concussions).
One result is that media outlets are characterizing Tagovailoa's September 12 concussion as the third of his NFL playing career, when it is almost certainly his fourth — to say nothing of what might have transpired before he turned pro.
There goes Alabama’s season on an injury cart, as Tua Tagovailoa hurts his right hip against Mississippi State...#RollTide #NCAAF pic.twitter.com/zcAwC74JjW
— Sportsbook Review (@SBRReview) November 16, 2019
2017–2019 College Career at the University of Alabama: A Hip Injury — And Head Trauma?
During his time with the Alabama Crimson Tide, Tagovailoa faced multiple injury challenges, though none reportedly involved concussions.Reportedly being the keyword there.
While Tagovailoa suffered several ankle injuries and, most famously, a severe hip injury that ended his 2019 season and raised concerns about his professional future (and ultimately allowed him to fall to the Dolphins, who had the fifth-overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft), no concussions were documented during his college career.
That said, some analysts suspect that he may have sustained at least one, given the intensity of the hits he took on the field, including the one that left his hip in pieces — and his nose bloodied and his face visibly swollen as he was carted off the turf.
Tua Tagovailoa is headed to the locker room after this hit by Matt Milano
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) September 25, 2022
Prayers up 🙏pic.twitter.com/u3cSEQpeKq
September 25, 2022, Week 3 vs. Buffalo Bills: An Unconfirmed First Concussion?
The discussion around Tagovailoa's brain injuries preceded his first concussion. At least, that's what the Miami Dolphins want you to believe. In a 2022 Week 3 game against the Buffalo Bills, Tagovailoa was hit while attempting a pass and fell backward, hitting the back of his helmet on the turf — it didn't look great!
Tagovailoa immediately appeared disoriented, stumbling as he tried to get up before collapsing again. That's an apparent concussion, right?
Wrong. The Dolphins' version was that he had hurt his back, or something else, which caused the wobbles.
The NFL Players Association (NFLPA) subsequently opened an investigation into whether the league's concussion protocols were followed concerning the incident. (More on that at the bottom of this article.)
Scary injury from last nights game as Tua Tagovailoa leaves the game on stretcher.
— American Football International (@AFIReview) September 30, 2022
Tua showed clear concussion symptoms just 4 days ago in the Bills game.
He should have never been playing last night. pic.twitter.com/8VSpbJCX3d
September 29, 2022, Week 4 vs. Cincinnati Bengals: First Reported Concussion
Talking heads spent four days talking about how Tagovailoa had a concussion and shouldn't be on the field when the Dolphins next took the field. Not only because it was a mere four nights later — again, a Thursday Night Football game — but because he wasn't right after he was allowed to re-enter the Bills game. Their skepticism proved justified. Against the Cincinnati Bengals, Tagovailoa was sacked by defensive tackle Josh Tupou, a hit that caused the quarterback's helmet to strike the turf violently. He exhibited the "fencing response," a common reaction to a traumatic brain injury that Dolphins fans have become all too adept at identifying.
Tagovailoa was immediately taken to a local hospital, diagnosed with a concussion, and discharged to return home with the team.
The incident proved to be the turning point that forced the NFL to alter its concussion protocols to enhance player safety.
December 25, 2022, Week 16 vs. Green Bay Packers: Second Reported Concussion
Tagovailoa played the entire Christmas Day home game against the Green Bay Packers in 2022 but was later found to have sustained a concussion at some undetermined point in the contest. He was retroactively placed in concussion protocol and ruled out for the remainder of the season, including the team's lone playoff game.During the offseason, Tagovailoa took up martial arts training to learn safer ways to fall, aiming to reduce the risk of future injuries. We've heard of players learning to slide or taking yoga classes, but this would be the first instance of a player taking up martial arts to learn how not to fall on the back of their head.
Tua and Damar Hamlin collide. Tua currently down on the field.. #BUFvsMIA pic.twitter.com/4QxhAhouGe
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) September 13, 2024
September 12, 2024, Week 2 vs. Buffalo Bills: Third Reported Concussion
Late in the third quarter of a Thursday Night Football game against the Bills in which he'd thrown three interceptions, Tagovailoa lowered his helmet at the end of a scramble for a first down and plowed into the shoulder pad of Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin — ironically, a player who last year earned his own spot in the NFL's annals of life-threatening on-field experiences. (Hamlin, you might recall, collapsed on the turf in Cincinnati in Week 17 of the 2022 season when he suffered a cardiac arrest.)Medical personnel quickly attended to Tagovailoa, and he was helped off the field.
One can only hope this is the final installment in Tua Tagovailoa's concussion timeline.
A reminder that an independent neurological consultant and a Dolphins doctor must jointly agree that Tua can safely return to full practice and contact before that happens. That's part 5 of the 5-part concussion protocol over the weeks to come for Tua.
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) September 13, 2024
Tua Tagovailoa's Injury History Forced the NFL to Change Its Concussion Protocols
The NFL used to deal with concussions in a certain way, and the league probably would still be getting away with it if it weren't for Tua Tagovailoa.The NFL's concussion protocols came under renewed scrutiny following the abovementioned October 8, 2022, game against the Buffalo Bills. Previous rules were vaguer about how a team reported concussion symptoms, who could pull a player out of the game, and the process by which he would be allowed to return to the field. Now, rules mandate that any player showing signs of ataxia, such as impaired balance or coordination, be removed from the game.
The NFL has also since implemented a "spotter" who can call down the officiating crew to remove a player from a game, even if the player swears they're fine. This scenario happened to Jaylen Waddle early in Thursday night's game after a hard tackle. After the catch, Waddle was removed from the game and missed much of the drive while he underwent evaluation in the medical tent.
To return to action, a player who has been diagnosed with a concussion must undergo a staged recovery process, starting with light aerobic activity and progressing to complete football activities. After that, an independent neurological consultant and a team doctor must both clear him for action.
The moral of the story? The chronology of Tua Tagovailoa's concussions will go down in history. His unfortunate experiences have changed how the sport deals with head and brain injuries.
