Tua Tagovailoa has struggled mightily with injuries
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is back on the field in a newer and bolder look during the ongoing OTA session. With the new look also comes a new mindset, one that the veteran signal caller hopes will be instrumental in him staying on the field for more games than he has been able to in the past.
Tagovailoa is one of the more injury-prone players in this hard-hitting league, which has led to him missing out on several games in his career thus far. In fact, he has played in all the regular-season games only once out of his five seasons in the league so far.
Addressing his injury concerns during the press conference, the Dolphins’ signal caller said that he was trying his best to be available for his teammates, and that longevity is more important to him instead of trying to make something happen on one play and getting hurt in the process.
“Doing everything I can to stay available for the guys. Like I’ve said before in the past, nothing changes with that, it’s knowing when is the time to give up on a play, and you know, I would say the longevity for me to be on the field with my guys is more important than whatever that one play is.”
Tagovailoa also placed emphasis on understanding that there is plenty of time in the game, there are more quarters to get the job done, and it is not worth being competitive on every play at the cost of an injury.
“You have more quarters than there would be with just that one play that I’m trying to, you know, show the guys that I’m competitive and whatnot, and I know they know that.”
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Tagovailoa’s problems with injury are nothing new in the professional league. Prior to joining the NFL, the Alabama alum suffered multiple injuries with the Crimson Tide as well.
In October 2019, he suffered a high ankle sprain, which was his first major injury, and it resulted in him missing one game. Just about a week later, he suffered 4 injuries – a pelvis fracture, a concussion, hip dislocation, and a nose fracture, all on one play, leading to 3 games missed.
In the NFL, Tagovailoa has already suffered 8 injuries in his 5-year career thus far.
A thumb sprain injury suffered during practice in week 12 of his rookie season ruled him out for 1 game. This was his first injury in the NFL.
Tagovailoa fractured his ribs in a week 2 game in 2021 and ended up missing the next three games.
Shortly afterwards, during a week 9 game, the Dolphins’ signal caller suffered a small finger fracture in his throwing hand, leading to one game out.
The first concussion of his NFL career occurred in week 4 of the 2022 season, due to which he missed 2 games.
Tagovailoa suffered his second concussion of his career, which was also the second one in the same season. He missed all 3 of the remaining regular-season games that year.
One year later, he suffered an unspecified shoulder injury but was able to return the following week without missing any games.
In just the second week of the 2024 season, Tagovailoa suffered his third and most recent concussion, which led to him missing out on 4 games.
The latest injury that the Dolphins’ quarterback has suffered was a hip sprain on December 25 of last year, resulting in 2 games missed.
As you can see, Tagovailoa has faced plenty of challenges when it comes to remaining healthy on the field. With this new approach that he is keen on implementing, it will be interesting to see whether he can remain true to his word, and more importantly, whether it has any positive effect on his body.
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