Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was taken by ambulance to a Cincinnati-area hospital after sustaining head and neck accidents throughout his workforce’s 27-15 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday evening.

Following the sport, Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel mentioned Tagovailoa suffered a concussion and nothing “extra severe.”

Tagovailoa, who was dominated out of the sport, was acutely aware all through and had full motion in his extremities. He’s anticipated to be discharged from the hospital and to fly again with the workforce to Miami. He’s in concussion protocol, per McDaniel.

“That was an emotional second, that’s not a part of the deal that anybody indicators up for, although you recognize it is a risk in soccer to have one thing that it’s important to get taken off on a stretcher,” McDaniel mentioned. “All of his teammates and myself, we have been all very involved, so the perfect information that we might get is that all the things’s checked out, that he did not have something extra severe than a concussion, and shall be flying again with us right here on the aircraft.”

The quarterback’s damage occurred within the second quarter when he was sacked by Cincinnati defensive sort out Josh Tupou with round six minutes left within the first half, and was slung right down to the turf, showing to hit the again of his head. In a daunting sight, Tagovailoa was on the bottom together with his arms outstretched, contorting his fingers, considerably like a boxer or fighter after a knockout in what’s known as a fencing response.

Tagovailoa stayed on the bottom for a couple of minutes whereas trainers attended to him earlier than a stretcher was introduced out to take him off the sector. He was then taken by ambulance to the College of Cincinnati Medical Middle.

The damage to Tagovailoa comes simply 4 days faraway from him quickly exiting the Dolphins’ win over the Buffalo Payments on Sunday. Tagovailoa left Sunday’s recreation with what was initially introduced by the workforce as a head damage. The QB returned to start out the second half of the sport and completed out the win. Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel mentioned within the aftermath of the sport that Tagovailoa had injured his again within the first half and the damage was exacerbated by the hit he sustained from Payments linebacker Matt Milano.

The NFL Gamers Affiliation subsequently deliberate to research if correct concussion protocol was adopted. The NFL on Wednesday confirmed a overview was ongoing, however each indication was that correct protocol had been adopted. The NFLPA launched a press release Thursday night stating its investigation is ongoing and that its “concern tonight is for Tua and we hope for a full and speedy restoration.”

McDaniel emphasised Thursday that an unbiased specialist evaluated Tagovailoa Sunday and he did nothing to “fudge” with protocol being adopted.

“That is why the NFL has these protocols, and there is not like each single NFL recreation that’s performed,” he mentioned. “There’s an unbiased specialist that focuses on specialty mind matter, so for me, so long as I am teaching right here, I am not going to fudge that complete state of affairs. If there’s any form of inclination that someone has a concussion, they go into concussion protocol; it’s totally strict. Folks do not fluctuate or stray; we do not mess with that, we by no means have so long as I have been head coach, so it’d by no means be a problem that you just guys have to fret about.”

Main into Thursday’s recreation, Tagovailoa was questionable to play as a result of again and ankle soreness, however made the beginning. McDaniel doesn’t imagine Tagovailoa’s accidents sustained Sunday had a direct connection to Thursday’s circumstance. Moreover, he underscored that he would by no means put the results of a recreation as a precedence over the well-being of a participant.

“I do not suppose that an damage from final week made him fall the identical approach this week, however yeah, I would not have any, like completely zero endurance for, or will ever put a participant in place for them to be in hurt’s approach,” McDaniel mentioned. “That isn’t what I am about in any respect, and no consequence of a recreation would ever affect me being accountable as the top coach of a soccer workforce.”

Tagavailoa was 8 of 14 for 110 yards, no touchdowns and an interception previous to his exit Thursday. Teddy Bridgewater took over at quarterback for the Dolphins.

The 24-year-old Tagovailoa, the 2020 NFL Draft’s fifth-overall decide, is in his third season with Miami.