The window for a return to practice by Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa opens next week. However, coach Mike McDaniel continues to avoid addressing whether Tua will return to action following the Week 7 game against the Colts.
“So everything has been the same,” McDaniel told reporters on Friday. “There’s been no negative; everything has been positive each and every day.”
Earlier this week, McDaniel said he expects Tua to play again this year, after suffering his most recent concussion on September 12. He’s eligible to play against the Cardinals in Week 8.
Immediately after Tua suffered at least his third (likely at least his fourth) concussion since the start of the 2022 season, McDaniel emphasized the importance of getting away from timelines that would add pressure to the situation. With the Dolphins’ offense not playing well — and with many believing Tua would make all the difference in the world — there’s a strong, even if largely unspoken, impetus for his return.
That might not be the best way for decisions to be made. Similar to the box-checking that happens during a game, when the goal is to get a key player back on the field as soon as possible, there’s an inherent urgency that tends to grease the skids of the concussion protocol.
The player wants to play. The team needs him to play. The game needs him to play. And it’s the player’s right to assume the risk of further concussions, once his impaired brain has sufficiently recovered from the most recent one.
It’s the big-picture version of the dilemma that played out in Week 5 with Bills quarterback Josh Allen. It’s in the game’s best interests to expedite the process. It’s in the best interests of the player’s health to tap the brakes, in order to ensure that a sound medical decision is being made.
The problem is that, until the Dolphins are mathematically eliminated from playoff consideration or the season ends, Tua will be pulled toward the field like steel toward a magnet. And the custodians of the game realize at some level that it’s good for business to not get in the way.
So, yes, medicine at some point can and will take a back seat to money. Even if it arguably shouldn’t.
And, really, if Tua has recovered from his latest concussion, why wait? Whenever he plays again, he’ll be at risk of another concussion. Unless he’d truly contemplate retirement if removed from the #LFG pressures of an ongoing football season, there’s no reason to delay his return.
Which brings me back to my main point. There’s no way of knowing whether he’d take a broader look at whether it makes sense to keep playing in the absence of the constant nagging feeling that he’s letting his teammates down, unless he waits until the offseason to make that decision.
Which can only happen if he doesn’t play again in 2024. Which by all appearances he has no desire to do.
