Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is in the concussion protocol after experiencing symptoms Monday.
His status for Sunday’s key AFC East game at New England is unclear.
Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel said Monday that it was too early to name a starter, only to say that backup Teddy Bridgewater will practice this week as though he’ll be QB1.
Bridgewater started Week 5 when Tagovailoa was in the protocol the first time. Skylar Thompson started in Week 6 when Bridgewater had just come out of concussion protocol himself. Bridgewater entered that game after Thompson injured his thumb.
Tagoavailoa played the entire game in Sunday’s loss to the visiting Green Bay Packers. He threw interceptions on the Dolphins’ final three possessions. He finished 16-of-25 passing for 310 yards and a touchdown, in addition to the picks.
McDaniel said Tagovailoa reported to team doctors that he was experiencing concussion-like symptoms, which led to him being placed in the protocol.
Tagovailoa left the field on a stretcher in a Week 4 loss at Cincinnati. He hit his head on the turf while being sacked by Bengals nose tackle Josh Tupou and remained on the ground for roughly 12 minutes before he was carted off and taken to a hospital with a concussion and neck injury.
In the Dolphins’ Week 3 game against Buffalo, the back of Tagovailoa’s head hit the ground when he was tackled by Bills linebacker Matt Milano. Tagovailoa grabbed his helmet, shook his head several times and then stumbled and fell after taking a few steps.
When he was examined at the time, Tagovailoa told the medical team he had aggravated a back injury and that was what caused him to stumble. He returned to the game in the second half.
That led to an immediate change in the concussion protocol, with ataxia being added to the no-go list for any player stumbling.
Tagovailoa has completed 64.8 percent of his passes this season for 3,548 yards, with 25 touchdowns against eight interceptions.
The Dolphins (8-7) have lost four in a row entering a crucial game at New England (7-8) on Sunday. Miami is currently the seventh seed in the AFC entering the game.
–Field Level Media
