Let Tua Live a Little

Tua Tagovailoa just celebrated his 27th birthday with his friends and family.

A video has been circulated on social media, where Tua holds an adult beverage while dancing.

All are occurring on a yacht.

Comments are plentiful, saying that Tua had a “beer belly,” a “Dad Bod,” and some call him “Fat Tua.”

I say leave him alone and allow him to enjoy his life!

Another famous and successful quarterback has also been reputed as having a “Dad Bod.”

Namely, Patrick Mahomes.

But let’s talk Tua.

I am not a big Tua fan and would have preferred Justin Herbert in the 2020 draft, but the Miami Dolphins drafted Tua.

And he will be with us as our QB 1 for a while.

Tua had an incredible run at the University of Alabama, appearing in consecutive National Championships in 2018 and 2019.

His parents noted that he slept with a football under his arm every night as a small child.

When he was eight, his peers could typically throw a football around 10 yards, and Tua could throw it for 30 yards.

Despite numerous injuries that could be career-ending, Tua persevered.

Against Mississippi State in 2019, Tua suffered a devastating injury, dislocating his hip, fracturing his pelvis, a broken nose, and a concussion.

That concussion would not be his only one.

Many players, especially in a vulnerable position as a quarterback, would have quit football.

Tua did not.

Even with Coach Brian Flores’s attitude during the 2020 season, when it was clear that Flores wanted a different quarterback, Tua never quit.

In week four of the 2022 season, we witnessed brutal concussions by Tua when he stumbled out of the pile in week three, but was quickly cleared to play.

The following week, we all saw Tua hit the back of his head and go into a “fencing response.”

“A reaction that occurs when someone suffers traumatic brain injury from a strong impact, such as a concussion, that causes the arms to flex into an unnatural position.”

That was very scary.

Yet, Tua loved football so much that he wanted to continue to play.

Season 2024 brought another concussion on Thursday Night Football against the Buffalo Bills, landing Tua on injured reserve for the next four games.

Yet, Tua wanted to continue to play football.

When you see videos of Tua enjoying his 27th birthday with his friends and family on a yacht in South Florida, I say, leave the kid alone.