Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has not played in a football game since suffering his second concussion of 2023 (at least) on Christmas Day, 2022.
Will that change Friday, when Tagovailoa’s Dolphins host Arthur Smith’s Atlanta Falcons in both teams’ first preseason game of the summer?
Is Tua Tagovailoa Playing for Miami Dolphins vs. Atlanta Falcons?
The short answer: No.
Tagovailoa is out for Dolphins-Falcons, revealing the worst-case secret in South Florida this week. Mike White and Skylar Thompson get the call against the Falcons.
McDaniel was asked twice this past week about how much he plans to use his starters Friday night. Both times he didn’t tip his hand.
“I don’t like to get ahead of myself,” McDaniel said on Tuesday. “To me, when you decide that stuff — and I’m very principled by this — when you decide that stuff before you have two practices, you’re essentially saying that these practices don’t matter in my opinion. Like where are the guys at, and what do they need?
“I’m sure in the future, future Mike will decide that there’ll definitely be some starters that don’t play,” he added. “There will probably be some starters that do. And that’s not a punishment. That’s more of like where they’re at in their game and doing right by them so that Week 1, you don’t spend a quarter or half a game getting the bugs or the rust off.”
Atlanta Falcons vs. Miami Dolphins
- TV Channel: CBS 4 Miami, Fox 5 Atlanta
- Start Time: 7 p.m.
- Live Stream Options: fuboTV, Hulu, DAZN, and other platforms
The Dolphins’ offense, in general, and Tagovailoa, in particular, have shown some serious rust in the last three practices.
Dating back to Saturday’s scrimmage, Tagovailoa went 30 of 59 passes in team drills for 291 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions.
That comes out to a 62.2 passer rating and a 4.9 yards-per-attempt average. Two of those three practices were against a Falcons defense that gave Tua trouble in team drills.
Tagovailoa suggested that even if he doesn’t play against the Falcons, he plans to be locked in mentally.
“I think mental reps are just as important as taking the physical reps,” Tagovailoa said Wednesday. “That’s what it’s all about. You’ve got to understand the game as a coach; you’ve got to understand the game as a player. It’s also a lot different seeing it from the sideline than it is seeing it in the game. Things are moving quicker. You can see if things are open, but you can’t feel pressure.
“You’re just basically out there gazing at what those guys have, so things can be open, but if protection allows you to throw a deep ball, a short ball, then it allows it. But for the most part, it’s tough. You’ve just got to stay in it mentally.”
Tua Tagovailoa on the Miami Dolphins’ offense pic.twitter.com/CSPXUaAfBF
— Adam Beasley (@AdamHBeasley) August 9, 2023
What To Expect From Tua Tagovailoa in 2023?
Expectations have never been higher for Tagovailoa and the Dolphins since Tua entered the league in 2022.
The Dolphins, per Caesars, are 14-to-1 to reach the Super Bowl and 25-to-1 to win it.
Tagovailoa is +2200 to win the NFL MVP, and his over/under passing yards total is 3,825.5.
Assuming Tagovailoa stays healthy, he should crush that number.
But his health has been his biggest concern since the day Tua entered the league. He has appeared in just 36 of a possible 51 games (including playoffs) in his three NFL seasons.