MIAMI: Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa faced calls on Friday to retire from the NFL for his own health after suffering his third documented concussion.
Tagovailoa was taken out of the game in the third quarter after suffering his latest head injury as he dived into a tackle searching for a first down in Thursday’s 31-10 defeat at home to the Buffalo Bills.
The 26-year-old was down on the floor for several minutes after the hit from Bills safety Damar Hamlin but left under his own power, hobbling slightly as he talked to team staff.
The quarterback suffered two concussions — along with other scares — during a 2022 season which threw his future in the game into doubt.
But he played without any noticable issues throughout last season only to see the concerns return in week two of this campaign.
The concern is that with each concussion the risks grow of the kind of serious long term brain problems that have afflicted players in the past.
“That’s it... NFL, go ahead and do the right thing,” retired former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant wrote on X after the incident.
“Tua has had entirely way too many concussions. He needs to retire for his longevity health concerns,” he added.
Former Denver Broncos tight-end Shannon Sharpe, now a prominent television pundit, agreed that Tagovailoa should call it a day.
“Really hope Tua is ok, but he’s gotta seriously think about shutting it down,” said Sharpe on X.
“I hate saying this. His concussions are getting worse and worse, and he’s a young man with his entire life ahead of him,” he said.
On Friday, Las Vegas Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said if he were the player’s coach he would make it clear that he should quit.
“I’ll be honest, I would tell him to retire. It’s not worth it. It’s not worth it,” he said, noting this was the third such concussion.
“It’s scary, you could see right away the players’ faces on the field, you could see the urgency to get Tua help,” he said.
But Tagovailoa’s actual coach, Mike McDaniel, said it was not the right moment for him to broach the subject of retirement.
“It would be so wrong of me to sniff that subject. It’s more in line with actually caring about the human being. You’re talking about his career. His career is his.... Bringing up his future is not in the best interests of him. I would plead with everyone that generally cares that that should be the last thing on his mind,” he said.
McDaniel said on Thursday, in the immediate aftermath of the injury, that evaluations of the injury and questions over Tagovailoa’s return should be left to medical experts.
Some have questioned whether Tagovailoa was wise to have leaned into the challenge rather than taking the safer option of sliding to avoid contact.
But JJ Watt said he couldn’t blame the quarterback from going as far as he could to make the first down.
“It is a bit of a double-standard in my opinion, everyone wants to see modern-day gladiators but they don’t want the guilt that comes along with it,” he said.
Tagovailoa urged to retire after latest concussion
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Tagovailoa urged to retire after latest concussion
Arsenal host Chelsea, looking to maintain lead in EPL
- “Well, I think one thing leads to another,” explained Gunners manager Mikel Arteta
- Rosenior said: “The Premier League is so difficult every week”
LONDON: Arsenal will look to move another step closer to their first Premier League title in 22 years Sunday when they host a Chelsea side managing its own improved run of form under new manager Liam Rosenior.
The Gunners (18-3-7, 61 points) maintained their five-point lead over Manchester City with an emphatic 4-1 win at Tottenham Hotspur last Sunday, though City still possess a match in hand.
Eberechi Eze and Viktor Gyokeres each had a brace as Arsenal pulled away following a first half that ended tied at 1-1.
The performance took Gyokeres to 10 league goals in his first English campaign after his move from Sporting Lisbon this summer. Five of those have come in the Sweden international’s last five league appearances.
“Well, I think one thing leads to another,” explained Gunners manager Mikel Arteta. “When you score the first one, the performance is good, you have more time with your teammates, you understand the games, the opponents, the league better, everything helps.”
The result stretched Arsenal’s winning run to five matches in the North London Derby and their unbeaten streak to eight. Against Chelsea, the Gunners have gone 10 unbeaten while winning seven in all competitions, including both legs of their EFL Cup semifinal in November and January.
But fifth-place Chelsea (12-6-9, 45 points) have looked improved under incoming manager Rosenior, even if the decision to replace Enzo Maresca caught most off guard.
The Blues have posted an 8-2-2 mark under his direction in all competitions, with those EFL Cup losses the only defeats. In the league, Chelsea have taken 14 points from six games, a pace that would see them above Arsenal if it were extended over the whole season.
Still, they begin three points behind Manchester United in the quest for the final UEFA Champions League spot next season. And it may get tougher from here, with Aston Villa, Newcastle and a round-of-16 UCL clash with Paris Saint-Germain looming.
Rosenior doesn’t see it that way.
“The Premier League is so difficult every week. Every week, the challenges that you face, the different tactical problems that you have, the physicality of the league, I don’t judge one game as harder than the other,” he said. “For me, I’m happy with this group, I’m happy with the start that we’ve made. We’ve won eight out of 12, it should be 10 out of 12. That’s not bad.”
Rosenior also confirmed captain Reece James will be available after the defensive midfielder sustained a minor injury in last weekend’s 1-1 draw against Burnley.
