Dolphins' Mike McDaniel opens up about Tua Tagovailoa taking blow to head as tackler

Perhaps the most surprising moment of the Miami Dolphins' 23-15 win over the Los Angeles Rams on Monday night involved Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa lowering his head to make a tackle and taking a knee to the helmet following an interception. 

Considering Tagovailoa's well-known history of concussions, it's no surprise Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel was asked on Tuesday if he's spoken with his QB1 about leaving such defensive plays for teammates. 

"I didn’t waste much time saying something to him," McDaniel explained, according to the Dolphins' website. "He can’t just think about his ability to stay healthy when he has the ball. It’s also when you’re trying to make a tackle. I told him not to close his eyes next time." 

McDaniel has millions of reasons to have a chat with Tagovailoa about doing whatever possible to avoid blows to the head. The 26-year-old admitted in April 2023 that he at least thought about retiring after he suffered multiple scary-looking concussions during the previous season. Most recently, Tagovailoa went down with a concussion on Sept. 12 that sidelined him for four games. The Dolphins fell to 2-6 on the campaign before the victory over the Rams. 

Numerous members of the NFL community said earlier this fall that Tagovailoa should retire for reasons related to his long-term health. As it pertains just to on-the-field matters, the $212.4M deal he signed this past summer could become quite a burden for the Dolphins if he injures himself in any way while trying to make a tackle. 

Quarterback Baker Mayfield ultimately lost his job with the Cleveland Browns largely because he hurt his shoulder on a similar play during a game in September 2021. 

"I think he could also prevent that from occurring by avoiding throwing it to the other team, which he knows as well," McDaniel added about Tagovailoa temporarily becoming a defensive player on Monday. "I think there’s always things to improve upon and learn from, and he definitely had a learning moment there."

The Dolphins next host the 2-7 Las Vegas Raiders this coming Sunday. As of Wednesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed Miami as a 7.5-point favorite for that contest.