Tua Tagovailoa Reveals He Considered Retiring After Suffering Multiple Concussions In 2022
Prior to last season, nobody would've predicted Tua Tagovailoa as the NFL's leader in passer rating and yards per attempt. Unfortunately, Tua's breakout season was marred by two diagnosed concussions, with many from the outside speculating there was at least one more.
Even with how electrifying he was as the first real hope of a franchise quarterback the Miami Dolphins have had since Dan Marino, Tagovailoa's future was officially called into question when he played through a diagnosed-after-the-fact concussion in a Christmas Day loss to the Packers.
On one hand, a big reason Tua decided to continue his football career is due to his son:
Not only is it appealing to keep playing so that his son can see him, but Tagovailoa will eventually be in line for a second contract. If he stays healthy and plays at the level he did this past year, he can expect a massive extension that will set up multiple generations of his family for life.
Here's where Tua's presser from Wednesday got a little, shall we say, disconcerting:
Tua is attempting to mitigate the risk of concussions going forward by studying jiu-jitsu in the offseason and learning how to fall better so he doesn't slam his head against the turf as often or as brutally as he has in the past. Whatever precautionary measures he takes, I just don't know how to feel about what "doctors and specialists" have told him.
Although science and medicine continue to progress at a rapid rate, the human brain is one of the most puzzling marvels in all of existence. Awareness about traumatic head injuries has increased exponentially even in the past decade or so, yet there's still so much that even the most cutting-edge experts don't know. Look no further than how Tua was managed last season — and how unpredictable the nature of concussions can be. As I mentioned before, he didn't even know he suffered his second concussion until the next day after the loss to the Packers.
Plus, I always thought the prevailing notion or widespread belief was that the more concussions you sustain, the more susceptible you are to having more of them down the line. A peer-reviewed deep-dive written by Dr. Mark Allen for CognitiveFX states that it takes less force to become concussed once you've dealt with your first one:
"If you’re like the majority of people who have had a concussion, then you likely recovered a few weeks afterward and have felt fine ever since then. Concussive symptoms typically resolve in 7 to 10 days (sports-related concussions) or within 3 months (non-athletes). But not everyone is that fortunate: up to 30% of post-concussion patients have lingering symptoms that don’t go away with time and rest.
"And even if you do recover and walk away with no long-term symptoms, it isn’t without consequence: You will always be more susceptible to another concussion than someone who hasn’t had one, particularly during the first year after your concussion. It takes less force to sustain a repeat concussion within a year of the previous concussion and it’s likely to take more time to resolve. Repeated subconcussive jarring or shaking to the head can contribute to this situation as well."
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), "a person with a history of repeated mild TBIs or concussions may…experience a longer recovery or more severe symptoms…[and] have long-term problems, including ongoing problems with concentration, memory, headache, and occasionally, physical skills, such as keeping one’s balance."
Not to get too academic journally/governmental on you. Just seems like that information runs a bit counter to what Tua has been told by experts in the field. To be fair, too, many factors are at play in each individual concussion case, including genetic predisposition. The severity of said concussions seems like another obvious key when medical professionals are evaluating each person's unique circumstances.
What Tua went through in that Thursday night game against the Bengals in particular was painful and scary to watch. He was knocked unconscious, and his arms and hands went into the fencing response before he was rushed to the hospital.
As a TuAnon stan, part of me is happy to hear Tua is at peace enough to continue playing for the time being. At the same time, you can't help but worry about his long-term health and be a little on edge every time he gets tackled to the ground. Sending all the good vibes possible his way for a healthy 2023 and beyond.