A new camera angle has emerged on the scary hit on Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa that knocked him out of Thursday night’s game against the Buffalo Bills.
Facing a 4th-and-4 situation red zone situation late in the third quarter, Tua Tagovailoa scrambled for a first down to keep the drive going. But as Tagovailoa was going down, he was accidentally knocked by Bills safety Damar Hamlin as the latter tried making a routine (and clean) tackle:
Damar Hamlin hits Tua very hard and he’s down on the field big time #NFL #Tua hope you are ok man pic.twitter.com/j6fdnwZXgq
— Tanner Phifer (@TannerPhifer) September 13, 2024
Tagovailoa was ruled out for the rest of the game with a concussion. Backup signal-caller Skylar Thompson finished the game and struggled mightily with just eight completions on 14 attempts for 80 yards and no touchdowns.
This new angle shows just how brutal the hit was that knocked Tagovailoa out:
Terrible: Chris Nowinski, CEO of @ConcussionLF says that Tua Tagovailoa's right hand clenching into a fist and his arm shooting straight into the air is a form of posturing, indicating a potential loss of consciousness.
💔
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) September 13, 2024
Concussions expert and Concussion Legacy Foundation co-founder Dr. Chris Nowinski states Tua Tagovailoa’s “fencing posture” indicated that he lost consciousness after taking the hit.
Tagovailoa’s latest concussion is especially concerning because of his history with them. In the 2022 season alone, the 2020 first-round pick suffered three concussions and missed five games as a result, including their Wild Card Round Game against the Bills.
Tagovailoa took up jiu-jitsu in the 2023 offseason to reduce his chances of suffering more concussions. We’ll be sure to provide more details on Tagovailoa’s status when they become available.
A Miserable Night All Around For Tua Tagovailoa’s Dolphins
Simply put, Miami had nothing positive to take away from their 31-10 loss to the Bills on Thursday night. Before Tua Tagovailoa’s injury, the Dolphins still got next to nothing going offensively.
The Bills made superstars Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle complete non-factors, perhaps giving other teams the blueprint to slowing down this high-powered offense. The one silver lining is that Miami has an extended rest before they travel to Seattle to take on the Seahawks next Sunday.
