As it turns out, it’s wasn’t a member of the medical or training staff that spotted concussion symptoms in Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. And it wasn’t Tua who self-reported the situation.
Coach Mike McDaniel told reporters on Wednesday, via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, that McDaniel realized something was amiss during a Monday film-review session.
McDaniel said that he had “questions about consistency of things I study daily on tape” regarding Tua. McDaniel questioned Tua about those things. McDaniel then encouraged Tua to go see a doctor, who placed Tua in the concussion protocol.
This is part of what the joint NFL-NFLPA review will examine -- when and how the symptoms were spotted. And why they weren’t spotted sooner. And why no one bothered to take a look at Tua based on the fact that his head struck the ground during the second quarter of the game.
Kudos to McDaniel for caring enough about the player to notice the situation and to act on it. But it’s fair to wonder whether others failed in their obligations to Tua by not noticing that there was a reason to evaluate him for a concussion.
