Tua Tagovailoa was back at the Dolphins' practice facility and “had a smile on his face with his teammates,” head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters, days after the quarterback suffered the third concussion of his professional career in a frightening scene on “Thursday Night Football.”
The quarterback's health has been one of the biggest topics in football since he suffered a head injury in the third quarter of a 31-10 loss to the Bills, with many former players expressing concern about Tagovailoa's health.
The Dolphins head coach offered some positive feedback on Tagovailoa's status but did not answer questions about the quarterback's future or whether the Dolphins would place him on injured reserve.
“We don't have enough information yet,” McDaniel said when the topic of IR was brought up. “That will be guided by our medical experts and will come after we have the appropriate information and have a discussion with Tua. [general manager Chris Grier] We can discuss that. It's either possible or not, because we're not yet ready to make that distinction. We'll see in the next few days.”
McDaniel said the Dolphins are monitoring Tagovailoa's condition on a daily basis and that he is working with the team's trainers and medical staff on his recovery.
Tagovailoa was attempting to run the ball when he collided head-on with Bills safety Damar Hamlin's body.
Tagovailoa fell to the ground and tried to get up but appeared to be in obvious pain and his fingers began moving uncontrollably, which immediately raised concerns.
He was able to get up under his own steam and walk off the field, but it quickly became clear he would miss the remainder of the game due to a concussion.
Given Tagovailoa's concussion history, there has been much interest in whether he will retire from football.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported last weekend that Tagovailoa has no plans to retire, and McDaniels said Monday he wasn't interested in speculating on what the quarterback might do next.
“I think it's a priority for Tua to talk about his career,” McDaniel said, “so I think the press is press. For me, I'm just a human being and I'm concerned about how things go day to day. I'm going to let Tua be a champion for his career and talk about it.”
Tua Tagovailoa concussion aftermath
The Dolphins coach said any decisions regarding Tagovailoa's recovery will be based on the results of a medical exam, but said he was happy to see the player at their facility on Monday.
“It was good to see him and I think his teammates were excited to see him,” McDaniel said.
The Dolphins signed former Pro Bowl quarterback Tyler Huntley on Monday, seemingly preparing for the possibility of Tagovailoa being sidelined for an extended period of time.
Skylar Thompson is expected to start when the Dolphins play the Seahawks on the road on Sunday.
