Dolphins’ Mike McDaniel Expects Tua Tagovailoa to Play Again This Season

In the Miami Dolphins' Week 2 matchup vs. the Buffalo Bills, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered a concussion which later placed him on the injured reserve list. Fans assumed his season, and potentially even his NFL career, was over.

Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel told reporters on Monday, however, that Tagovailoa "expects" to play again this season.

“I do expect to see him playing football in 2024. But where that is exactly we’ll let the process continue," McDaniel said.

The earliest Tagovailoa could return to the field would be on Oct. 27 vs. the Arizona Cardinals. He's been speaking with experts since his concussion, and McDaniel said those conversations have been positive.

There was a lot of concern for Tagovailoa surrounding this concussion because it was his fourth one in five years. Many NFL figures called for the quarterback to retire, including Las Vegas Raiders coach Antonio Pierce, but Tagovailoa already expressed that he has no plans to retire.

Since Tagovailoa left in Week 2, the Dolphins have gone 1–3 under Tyler Huntley, Skylar Thompson and Tim Boyle at quarterback. The Dolphins had a bye in Week 6, but they are coming off their second win of the season in Week 5, a 15–10 victory over the New England Patriots. The team's other win came in Week 1 with Tagovailoa leading the team to 20–17 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Dolphins sit tied for second in the AFC East with the New York Jets.