Miami Dolphins players were thrilled to see quarterback Tua Tagovailoa back on the practice field Wednesday, especially wide receiver Tyreek Hill.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24218150/1441439591.jpg)
Tagovailoa practiced for the first time since suffering a concussion on September 12. He was placed on injured reserve the following week and missed the next four games.
The NFL’s leading passer from last season is now eligible to return from IR, and Hill said Tagovailoa’s return made everything feel normal again.
“He looked great. Felt like old times,” Hill said. “Me and him connected on a few deep shots today, and that kind of got me feeling good today. I missed that and I missed him. I told him I’ve got to take him and his wife to dinner because I missed him so much. S— was so beautiful, that s— almost made me cry today like just having him in the lineup, having him call the plays, having him direct the offense, like just hearing his voice.”
Miami has struggled in the four games without Tagovailoa, going 1-3. During this stretch, the Dolphins’ offense has ranked last in scoring, 31st in offensive expected points added, and 29th in yards per game.
Hill’s own performance has dipped without Tagovailoa. He is on track for just 833 receiving yards, his lowest total since his rookie season.
After connecting with Tagovailoa on several deep passes during practice, Hill’s excitement spread to the locker room. Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle said that Tagovailoa completed nearly every pass he threw to Hill, and when they are in sync, “it normally leads to big plays.”
“It was beautiful. It was so beautiful,” Hill said. “I bet if you go ask every guy in this locker room, just say, ‘Hey, did Tua connect with Tyreek today?’ And if they say, ‘Yeah,’ the next question should be, ‘What was his reaction right after that?’ I just had a big cheese on my face because it just felt so good. Like y’all don’t know what it does to me.”
Tagovailoa’s injury occurred when he took contact after a scramble against the Buffalo Bills in Week 2. Both he and coach Mike McDaniel agreed that he needs to protect himself better on the field going forward.
Hill joked that he and his teammates remind Tagovailoa to slide often, and they think Dolphins fans should cheer for him when he does. Running back Raheem Mostert also shared the same message, saying that Tagovailoa has to take responsibility for his actions on the field.
“Oh yeah, we’ve been talking to him ever since his injury,” Mostert said. “I’ve been telling him, ‘Hey, you need to work on sliding.’ And we all joke around and laugh, but on a serious note, he knows that he has to protect himself a little bit better and moving forward, only he can control those things.
We can say those things to him until we’re blue in the face, but one thing that I would say that’s always my saying is, ‘Hey, you can bring a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink, right?’
“We’re going to bring Tua to that water, but we can’t make him drink. He has an understanding of that, and moving forward, he’s going to do his best.”
Tagovailoa was a limited participant in Wednesday’s practice. On Thursday, he was upgraded to a full participant and can now meet with an independent neurological consultant to get final clearance to play.
Tagovailoa, the No. 5 pick in the 2020 NFL draft, said he has been symptom-free since the day after his concussion, which was the third diagnosed concussion of his NFL career.
