Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa dropped back to pass during Monday’s game and aimed a throw toward Jaylen Waddle.
Before Waddle could catch the ball, Rams linebacker Christian Rozeboom stepped in front of him, intercepted it, and ran upfield as Tagovailoa and the Dolphins tried to catch him.
What happened next surprised many viewers. Tagovailoa, who has had multiple concussions during his NFL career, lowered his body and attempted a headfirst tackle. Part of Rozeboom’s leg made contact with Tagovailoa’s head.
“I would say it didn’t feel as bad as what it may have looked like,” Tagovailoa said on Wednesday. “Essentially, you’re out there playing football. I didn’t really feel that (hit).
I wasn’t just going to move aside and let him run down the sideline and possibly score. You have to make decisions, and I should have never thrown the pick in the first place.”
He added that after watching the play, he wouldn’t do anything differently, although coach Mike McDaniel pointed out earlier that the quarterback saw on film how he “was a little vulnerable” in that moment.
“I think when you’re carrying the ball and you think you’re protecting yourself, you also know that you’re trying to be physical and run somebody over,” McDaniel said. “Tua understands the consequences of being careless with the ball.”
McDaniel also mentioned that after watching the play on film, Tagovailoa likely had a different perspective than when he was on the field.
Tagovailoa didn’t leave the game, but the moment quickly spread on social media, mainly because of his history with head injuries. It was only his third game back after being placed on injured reserve with his third diagnosed concussion in two years.
Tagovailoa was hurt on September 12 when he collided with Buffalo Bills defensive back Damar Hamlin.
He had run for a first down and lowered his shoulder to initiate contact with Hamlin instead of sliding, which led to conversations with his teammates about the importance of protecting himself in the future.
“We’ve been talking to him ever since his injury,” said running back Raheem Mostert last month. “I’ve been telling him, ‘Hey, you need to work on sliding.’ We joke around about it, but seriously, he knows he has to protect himself better.”
Tagovailoa also suffered two concussions in 2022 and took another scary hit to the head that led to changes in the NFL’s concussion rules.
He’s said he doesn’t want to be the face of traumatic brain injuries in the NFL, but understands that his injuries have made that a part of his reality.
McDaniel said on Wednesday that he’s had many talks with Tagovailoa, who explained how this latest concussion opened his eyes to the impact of his injuries.
“He’s told me a lot about how eye-opening it was to miss time this season,” McDaniel said. “He saw the effect it had on the team. He doesn’t take it lightly.”
McDaniel added, “I don’t think he was being careless with his body. I think he had a situation where he thought he was protecting himself. I expect him to make adjustments, just as he’s made adjustments in other parts of his game.”
Tagovailoa acknowledged the challenge of balancing self-protection with playing the game at full speed.
“Instinctively, when you’ve been playing football since you were young, you go back to what you know,” he said. “It’s finding a balance. You can’t just think about that when you’re playing. The game is too fast and too hard to think about anything else.”
