If the Miami Dolphins are to advance in the NFL playoffs, they’ll have to do it with a backup quarterback. Head coach Mike McDaniel revealed on Wednesday that Tua Tagovailoa will not play in Sunday’s game against the Buffalo Bills.
NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe reported the news on Wednesday. Tagovailoa hasn’t been cleared from concussion protocol yet and is not ready to resume football activities.
The team plans to move forward with Skylar Thompson as the starter. He’s appeared in each of the last two games for the Dolphins.
Tagovailoa suffered a head injury in Miami’s Christmas Day game against the Green Bay Packers. He missed the remainder of the regular season while in concussion protocol.
Thompson completed 20-of-31 passes for 152 yards in Miami’s 11-6 win over the New York Jets last week. He’s appeared in seven games this year, throwing for 534 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions.
Miami travels to Buffalo on Sunday for the first round of the AFC playoffs. The Dolphins defeated the Bills 21-19 at Hard Rock Stadium in Week 3.
It’s going to be awfully tough to replicate that result in Buffalo without Tagovailoa under center.
Should Tua Tagovailoa Play Again This Season?
This marks the second time this season Tua Tagovailoa has been in concussion protocol. The first time happened in Week 4, when the quarterback had to be taken off the field on a stretcher against the Cincinnati Bengals.
It begs the question — even if Miami wins on Sunday, should Tagovailoa call it a season? ESPN analyst Robert Griffin III believes that should be the case.
“When we talk about these head injuries, it’s nothing to play with,” Griffin said weeks ago on Monday Night Countdown. “You’ve got to put the person before the player. I’m more concerned about Tua and his longevity of life than I am about whether he’s going to play on Sunday.
“What does this look like for Tua in the future? He should not play for the rest of this season. Whether you call it two concussions or three, two incidents or three incidents. It’s a repeat, and the hit … that we think he suffered the concussion on, it wasn’t that violent of a hit. It was a routine play. But because his head smacked off the ground, the repeat of all of those hits are starting to add up. So I’m more concerned with Tua and his family than about him playing the rest of the year.”
