Getty Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce.
There was a scary situation during the Thursday Night Football game between the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills. In the third quarter, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa tucked the ball and ran but was hit in the head by Bills safety Damar Hamlin.
Tagovailoa quickly fell to the ground and appeared to briefly be knocked unconscious. This is the third time that the quarterback has been diagnosed with a concussion in the last three seasons. This has led to some serious concern about whether or not he could continue to play.
Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce has been around football most of his life and spent nine seasons playing in the NFL. He’s seen enough and believes that Tagovailoa needs to walk away from the game.
“I’ll be honest, I’d tell him to retire,” Pierce said during his September 13 press conference. “It’s not worth it. It’s not worth it. Played the game, I haven’t witnessed anything like I’ve seen that’s happened to him three times. Scary. You can see right away, the players’ faces on the field. You can see the sense of urgency to get Tua help.
“I just think that at some point, he’s going to live longer than he’s going to play football. Take care of your family.”
Could Tua Tagovailoa Actually Retire?
Whether or not Tagovailoa should retire is an incredibly difficult conversation to have. He risks serious long-term damage to his brain if he continues to get concussions. However, he’s only 26 and signed a four-year, $212 million contract in free agency this offseason.
Retiring so young and with so much money left on the table is going to be hard for him to do. That said, as Pierce noted, Tagovailoa isn’t only a football player and he’s got a lot of life left to live. It’s hard to imagine a decision will come anytime soon.
Even if he doesn’t play the rest of the season, he likely wouldn’t make an announcement until after the year is over. Regardless, this is a situation the NFL and the Dolphins need to monitor closely. At some point, the league and team may need to protect Tagovailoa from himself. He’s young and likely doesn’t want to step away from football but it may be the only choice depending on what the doctors have to say.
Devastating Blow to the Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins have clearly grown to be big fans of Tagovailoa. They gave him a massive contract extension this offseason and head coach Mike McDaniel has spoken very highly of the quarterback. He even kissed the quarterback on the head following the latest concussion.
The Dolphins are a team with Super Bowl aspirations and have already had one playoff derailed due to a Tagovailoa injury. If the quarterback is out for the season, Miami may not have a very long run. It’s a difficult situation to navigate as the Dolphins don’t want to put Tagovailoa at risk but if the doctors clear him and he wants to play, they may have to put him back on the field. It’s not an ideal situation for the team but it’s something they’re going to need to figure out quickly.
