Tua Tagovailoa is back. And with each passing concussion, his return to the sport that gives him concussions will be a little more awkward.
The Dolphins quarterback was borderline defiant when meeting with reporters on Monday. Tua insists that he’s had no symptoms since the day after his latest concussion — even though the brain injury suffered on Thursday, September 12 caused him to miss four games on injured reserve.
After talking the situation through with Devin McCourty during Tuesday’s PFT Live, two things occurred to me. One, Tua doesn’t want his opponents to think he’s thinking about his next concussion. Two, Tua doesn’t want to think about his next concussion.
With at least three (probably at least four) in fewer than two years, does anyone think he won’t have another one? And if/when it happens, then what? Miss a month and do it all over again?
Like every NFL player, Tua has the absolute right to assume the risk of concussions. The question is whether there’s a point at which it’s too many concussions. Even if he recovers from each one (the next day, as he claims), this lather, rinse, repeat process doesn’t seem sustainable.
That leads to the broader question of whether the NFL and the NFL Players Association should devise a standard for essentially forcing a player to retire (hopefully with some form of financial compensation) after a certain number of concussions.
How many concussions are too many? That’s for the league and union to decide. Regardless, there arguably should be a limit to the number of concussions that any one player can sustain.
Regardless, it’s a bigger deal than an ankle sprain or a pull hamstring. They heal, they happen again, they heal, they happen again. The brain is a different situation.
Twice, Tua has experienced the fencing response after a concussion. That typically results from a significant brain trauma.
What happens if that happens again? The league, the team, and the player would be wise to have a plan for when it happens again — because chances are it will.
