It is impossible for most of us to understand the singular focus and unparalleled competitiveness of professional athletes. A relentless drive to put victory and personal goals above all else, even if it means self-sacrifice.
That said, you don't have to have an NFL resume to know when a player is on the brink of disaster, and tragically Tua Tagovailoa appears to be doomed to do just that. Tagovailoa needs to be protected. Not because of his blockbuster or soccer, but because of himself.
Tagovailoa is scheduled to pass the league's concussion protocol on Wednesday with the goal of returning to the field Sunday. This is Tua's third concussion in two years since his return, but the risk is no longer a missed game or a lost season, but a severe traumatic brain injury that will define Tua for the rest of his life. What we are left with is a 26-year-old young man caught up in the present, with a tunnel vision about his career, and who knows that the risks he takes now will reverberate for the next 50-plus years of his life. It's sad that you can't understand that.
We know this because the quarterback spoke on Monday. He has an unwavering loyalty to football, doesn't like change, and has an old-fashioned, rigid sense of football that lacks modern science and logic.
“I love this game, love it to death.” Tagovailoa told reporters with concern.. It's a cliché, usually exaggerated, but the decisions Tua is making now could very well end in death. Frighteningly, no one seems able to tell him what risks he's taking.
Part of the reason is that there's still a lot we don't know about how CTE develops. There are many examples of athletes who have sustained life-altering traumatic brain injuries, but most have been playing long enough that their concussion numbers are not tracked properly or are ignored all together. I did. Junior Seau's death, Steven Davis suffering amnesia four years after retiring, Gale Sayers, Frank Wycheck, the list goes on.
Over the past decade, we've watched two of the NFL's brightest young stars retire far before their end due to injury concerns. Luke Cushley retired from the Panthers at age 28 due to concussion concerns. Midway through his trajectory to becoming the greatest linebacker of all time, Kuechly suffered three concussions in three consecutive seasons and, like Tua, made the difficult decision to step away from the game he loved, risking his future. I understood. .
Similarly, quarterback Andrew Luck retired at the peak of his career at age 29. Luck came to his decision due to a combination of injuries, but also cited concerns about post-concussion trauma.
For Tagovailoa, it seems impossible to walk away from the game. He can't break his addiction. While one can have ultimate sympathy for the difficulty of change for someone who has been confined to the world of football all of one's adult life, one can't even accept the idea of donning a Guardian cap upon one's return, making this a choice. It is also possible to scrutinize the elements of Proven to reduce the risk of concussion.
When asked Monday why he doesn't wear a concussion mitigation helmet cover, Tua simply replied, “It's a personal choice,” without elaborating further.. Some players say they don't like the feel of the extra cap, but when you've suffered multiple concussions that could potentially change your life forever, this seems like the obvious choice.
The biggest problem in the NFL right now when it comes to concussions is that the onus is on the players. The league has made great strides in ensuring teams don't put players back in danger too quickly, but by imposing more on players to make their own decisions about their own health, they're putting more pressure on players to make their own decisions about their own health. A culture and misplaced macho bravado opens the door for pressure to be applied to returning players. The brain injury occurred much earlier than expected.
Tua Tagovailoa needs to be protected from himself. Because while it's certainly fair to say that athletes should be allowed to make their own choices, when a competitive athlete in their 20s can't think as positively as they can imagine themselves… This is because intervention is also necessary. They will live into their 40s and beyond as a result of the decisions they make now.
No one wants to see Tagovailoa pulled from the game he loves before he's ready, but tragically his injury history has put him at this crossroads. Someone needs to pull him aside and tell him that choosing to step away from football because of a concussion is not a sign of weakness, but rather a sign of strength. Sacrificing your personal goals and dreams to ensure a better life for your children and family is the ultimate act as a husband, father, and man.
