Just over one month after Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered yet another concussion, coach Mike McDaniel said he expects to see Tagovailoa “playing football in 2024.”
McDaniel told reporters Monday that Tagovailoa’s return won’t come in Week 7 against the Indianapolis Colts, but Tagovailoa’s progress has remained positive.
“There’s still information that he’s seeking this week,” McDaniel said. “As far as timelines go, I know he’s not playing this week and I do expect to see him playing football in 2024, but where that is exactly we’ll let the process continue since we still have time before we could even entertain anything.”
Tagovailoa suffered a concussion against the Buffalo Bills in Week 2 after colliding with safety Damar Hamlin on a scramble. The concussion is the third documented one of Tagovailoa’s professional career, and his head injuries in 2022 forced the league to reevaluate its protocol policies. Just days before his first documented concussion in 2022, Tagovailoa was stretchered off the field of a previous game after demonstrating a fencing response.
Following his most recent concussion, former players and analysts took to social media to urge Tagovailoa to retire.
McDaniel’s most recent comments come one week after the coach told reporters Tagovailoa was set to meet with an expert consultant. McDaniel added that the final stages of Tagovailoa’s concussion protocol wouldn’t be completed until he is off the injured reserve list.
Tagovailoa is eligible to be activated and begin practicing on Oct. 23 at the earliest.
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