By: Albert Wang
Tagovailoa was tackled twice, but the hits were so hard he was taken off the field on a stretcher. After being tackled Tagovailoa lay in a state where his brain was so severely injured he wasn’t in full control of his body. Tua was released a few hours later from a hospital and flew home with the team.
Coach Mike McDaniel was very stressed and emotional watching his star quarterback gets hurt. Later, Coach Mike McDaniel felt “relieved that Tagovailoa was okay and it was just a concussion”. Many are advising the NFL to take hits to the head more seriously. Recently, a 1 billion dollar deal was settled with former players that have to deal with pain after their retirement from prior injuries.
Chris Nowinski (CO-FOUNDER of Concussion Legacy Foundation) took to Twitter saying “I don’t think this guy gets it”. Nowinski says that concussions are no joke and have serious consequences.
Tua took a big hit to the head in the game on Thursday, against the Bengals. He needed help walking off the field after the huge hit. , Tua was cleared to play 30 minutes later in the same game. Which was infuriating to former players and fans. This is a huge risk to his health.
Jeff Miller (league’s executive vice president for communications, public affairs, and policy) says the team doctors followed the league protocols. This says that if the player has instability or shows signs of needing medical attention, they will together decide whether the player will return or not.
Emmanuel Acho {former linebacker and now an analyst on Fox Sports} discussed on the talk show that the NFL must put players’ safety over winning a game.
The NFL is one of the most exciting sports and leagues to watch, knowing the speed, brutality, and power of the game. Players become multi-millionaires playing, but at what cost?
Tua is a brilliant player who can read the defense and throw accurately and far. Also, the fact that he is only 24 years old with a bright future ahead of him. Hopefully, the injuries don't catch up to him and derail his career.