NFL chief medical officer: Tua Tagovailoa showed no visible signs of concussion



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NFL chief medical officer: Tua Tagovailoa showed no visible signs of concussion

NFL chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sills says Tua Tagovailoa showed no visible signs of concussion and that was why he was allowed to stay in the game. On Sunday, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tagovailoa played for the entire game in a 26-23 loss to the Green Bay Packers.

The following day, Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel announced Tagovailoa was being placed in the concussion protocol. On Wednesday, the Dolphins announced that Tagovailoa did indeed suffer a concussion on Sunday. The NFL has a strict policy when it comes to concussions and Tagovailoa would have been removed from the game immediately had anyone reported signs of concussion.

Dr. Sills on why Tagovailoa was allowed to play the entire game

"What our spotters and our unaffiliated neuro doctors are looking for is any blow that transmits force to the head or neck area, followed by that injury behavior.

There are many blows to the head that occur during a game. We are always looking for the blow plus the injury behavior, and obviously if we see any injury behavior, then there's a call down made to evaluate that player. Also, if a player identifies any symptoms or a teammate, coach, official, anyone else identifies symptoms, that also initiates a protocol.

So many people can initiate the protocol and in this game on Sunday, none of those factors were present. There were no visible signs present, even though there was a blow to the head and the player did not report any symptoms, despite being in contact with the medical staff throughout the game.

So, there was nothing that would have triggered the protocol in the moment," Sills told NFL Media's Judy Battista. Tagovailoa had a very poor second half versus the Packers as he threw three interceptions and that ultimately cost the Dolphins victory.

With Tagovailoa suffering a concussion, Teddy Bridgewater will likely be the Dolphins' quarterback for this week's game against the New England Patriots. Earlier this season, Tagovailoa missed a few games after sustaining a concussion.