Henry McKenna
NFL Reporter
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Hard Rock Stadium fell silent as Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa lay on the ground near the end zone with nearly a dozen staff members hovering over him.
Everyone in the building realized that Tua had actually suffered the third recorded concussion of his career, and it looked just as scary as the others.
He suffered a head injury when he crashed headfirst into the arms of Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamilin during a game Thursday night. Tagovailoa then lay on the ground for a minute or two before getting up and eventually walking to the sideline with coach Mike McDaniel. Tagovailoa then went to the locker room with a trainer.
Tua suffered two concussions during the 2022 season, and the Dolphins decided to suspend him for the entire season after the second concussion.
It’s a terrible coincidence that Hamilton, a tackler, suffered a cardiac arrest on the field and had to be resuscitated.
Tagovailoa and the Dolphins were down 31-10 when he left in the third quarter. He was 17 of 25 for 145 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. He also had a sack and three quarterback hits.
This offseason, Tua and the Dolphins agreed to a four-year, $212 million contract.
The quarterback also shed weight in the offseason in an effort to gain mobility and evasiveness in the pocket, but at the expense of increased injury risk.
Henry McKenna covered the Patriots for seven years for USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Boston Globe Media before joining FOX Sports as an AFC East reporter. Follow him on Twitter. @henrycmckenna.
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