After a difficult season that challenged the long-term health of his brain, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa admitted this week that he actually pondered retiring from the NFL after last season.
The early part of the 2022 NFL season showed so much promise for Tua Tagovailoa and the Miami Dolphins. Under new head coach Mike McDaniel, the offense got off to a flying start and the third-year QB started to look like the franchise signal caller they hoped for when they took him with the fifth pick overall in the 2020 NFL Draft. Then it all changed by the third week of the season.
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Against the Buffalo Bills in Week 3, Tagovailoa banged his head on the turf after a hit and throw. He seemed to be wobbled after the play and showed signs of a concussion. Yet, he was allowed to finish the game. The following week against the Cincinnati Bengals, he was knocked out after a sack and left laying in a position that scared NFL fans watching the game that night.
The Miami Dolphins QB would eventually return to the lineup but he ended up suffering a second official concussion that ended his season in Week 16. His bout with brain injuries in 2022 was the source of headlines as it put a spotlight on how the league diagnoses concussions and how they help players recover.
Miami Dolphins record (2022): 9-8, second place in AFC East
Concussions have long been an issue in sports with violent physicality, and with athletes now knowing more about the dangers of Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), it has led some to decide to leave their sports behind earlier than players in previous generations.
It seems that was something Tua Tagovailoa seriously considered after his last concussion in the 2022 season. As he explained during a Miami Dolphins press conference on Wednesday (via NFL Media’s Cameron Wolfe).
“I think I considered it for a time. Having sat down with my family. Having sat down with my wife. Having those kinds of conversations. But it would be hard for me to walk away from this game with how old I am, with my son; I always dreamed of playing for as long as I could to where my son knew exactly what he was watching his dad do. It’s my health, it’s my body and I feel like this is what’s best for me and my family. I love the game of football, if I didn’t I would have quit a long time ago.”
– Tua Tagovailoa
Tagovailoa turned 25 in March and it is understandable why he wouldn’t want to leave the sport behind when he isn’t even close to his 30s. However, his brain health will be a story that follows the Miami Dolphins possibly for years to come until he proves he can avoid more brain trauma in the future.