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Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has been ruled out of his team's Week 2 Thursday Night Football game against the Buffalo Bills due to a concussion.
Tagovailoa appeared to take a hard shot to the head before walking off the field with 4:24 remaining in the quarter. Backup Skylar Thompson took over at quarterback in Tagovailoa's absence.
Tagovailoa finished Thursday's game with 145 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown, on 17 of 25 passing. The former Alabama standout has a documented history with head injuries, having been placed in the NFL's concussion protocol twice and suffered several concerning blows to the head during the 2022 NFL season which, despite being limited to just 13 games, was the most productive of his first three seasons, prior to a career-best 2023 campaign.
Tagovailoa cited medical opinions that Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) "wasn't going to be a problem" for him as he's not "constantly" hitting his head like players at other positions prior to the 2023 season after admitting he contemplated retirement. The Dolphins' handling of Tagovailoa's concussion status was reviewed by the NFL and NFL Players Association during the 2022 season, which led to numerous modifications to protocols.
Tagovailoa recently agreed to a four-year, $212.4 million extension.