Miami Dolphins

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is reportedly expected to start Thursday night against the Cincinnati Bengals.

According to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Tua should be good to go Thursday despite back and ankle injuries, provided he does not suffer any setbacks. Star wide receiver Jaylen Waddle is also expected to play through a groin injury.

Tagovailoa's health was a significant storyline during and after a Week 3 victory over the Buffalo Bills. He temporarily left the game after taking a hard hit and stumbled when he attempted to walk, although he eventually returned and led Miami to a victory.

The Dolphins initially announced it was a head injury, although head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters after the game it was a lower back issue that caused his legs to wobble.

Despite McDaniel's comments, Pelissero reported the National Football League Players Association had opened an investigation into how the team handled a concussion check for the quarterback.

Tagovailoa entered the 2022 season under something of a spotlight as he attempted to establish himself as the long-term franchise quarterback for the Dolphins after an inconsistent start to his career.

The 24-year-old has responded by completing 71.3 percent of his passes for 925 yards, eight touchdowns and two interceptions, taking advantage of an offense that has plenty of firepower with Tyreek Hill and Waddle on the outside.

With Tua leading the way, the Dolphins are one of only two remaining undefeated teams in the NFL this season at 3-0.

Veteran Teddy Bridgewater would step in if Tagovailoa does suffer a setback before Thursday night's game goes off, but for now, it appears as though Tua is poised lead the Dolphins in pursuit of a 4-0 start.

Former Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick thinks the team is succeeding this season because Tua Tagovailoa has the full support of head coach Mike McDaniel.

Speaking to Joe Schad of the Palm Beach Post, Fitzpatrick felt the dynamic between Tagovailoa and former head coach Brian Flores was "difficult" in some ways.

"[McDaniel's] all about preaching confidence to a guy and building him up rather than trying to break him down," Fitzpatrick said. "And I think that's translated well, so far to the field."

Fitzpatrick and Flores spent two seasons together with the Dolphins from 2019 to '20. Tagovailoa joined them in 2020 after being drafted No. 5 overall following a successful two-year run as Alabama's starting quarterback.

Flores used Fitzpatrick as his starter for the first six games of the 2020 season. Tagovailoa didn't get into a game until late in a Week 6 blowout win over the New York Jets.

After Miami's bye in Week 7, Tagovailoa replaced Fitzpatrick at quarterback. Despite having a solid statistical line through his first four starts (61.1 percent completion rate, six touchdowns, no interceptions), Flores benched his rookie late in Week 11 against the Denver Broncos.

An injury forced Tagovailoa to miss Week 12 but he returned to his post as the starter the following week. He finished his debut season with 1,814 yards, 11 touchdowns and a 64.1 percent completion rate.

Fitzpatrick signed with the Washington Commanders as a free agent after the 2020 season, ensuring Tagovailoa would be Miami's quarterback in 2021. The 24-year-old had another decent performance with 2,653 yards, 16 touchdowns and a 67.8 percent completion rate in 13 games.

There's no denying the talent around Tagovailoa is better in 2022 than it was in the previous two years. The Dolphins brought in Tyreek Hill, who is arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL, to play alongside Jaylen Waddle on the outside.

But McDaniel, who was hired to replace Flores in February after spending the previous five seasons as an assistant for the San Francisco 49ers, routinely went out of his way before the start of the season to praise Tagovailoa's ability.

"It's the most accurate, catchable ball I've ever seen," McDaniel said of Tagovailoa's throwing skills during an August appearance on The Dan Le Batard Show:

The results thus far have backed up what McDaniel has been saying. Tagovailoa leads the NFL in QBR (82.8), ranks second in passing yards (925), is tied for third in touchdown passes (eight) and is fourth in completion percentage (71.3).

McDaniel has the Dolphins off to a 3-0 start for the first time since 2018.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa says he plans to play in Thursday night's game against the Cincinnati Bengals despite a back injury.

"Doing everything I can to get out there and play," Tagovailoa told reporters Tuesday.

Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Tagovailoa would be listed as questionable if this were a normal week ahead of a game. The Dolphins are running a limited practice schedule, largely comprised of walkthroughs, before traveling to Cincinnati.

“If he doesn’t play, it was not possible… We are fortunate to have Teddy Bridgewater," McDaniel said.

Tagovailoa went down with a back injury late in the first half of Sunday's win over the Buffalo Bills. Many feared a concussion when Tagovailoa's head violently smacked off the turf and he collapsed to the ground as he moved toward the huddle, but the Dolphins said he passed concussion testing and returned to the game.

The NFLPA called on a review of the process that led Tagovailoa to return. McDaniel said Tagovailoa is not in concussion protocol, so Dolphins doctors not only cleared him Sunday but have remained convinced he did not suffer a head injury.

While it's apparent the team is going to exercise every option to keep the Alabama product in the lineup, it's far from a sure thing he suits up. Tagovailoa acknowledged the back injury impacts every part of his game and said it was "very difficult" for him to put his full force into throws. For a player that already has questions about his arm strength, it's fair to wonder if Tagovailoa will be extremely limited if he is in the lineup.

Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters on Monday he wasn't going to "assume" starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa would be able to play on Thursday night against the Cincinnati Bengals as he deals with back and ankle injuries:

Tagovailoa, 24, suffered what appeared to be a head injury during Sunday's 21-9 win over the Buffalo Bills. He left the game in the second quarter and was deemed questionable to return by the team at halftime, only to return in the second half.

The NFLPA wants to open a review into whether the Dolphins properly went through the league's concussion protocol, per ESPN's Marcel Louis-Jacques, though both head coach Mike McDaniel and Tagovailoa said he was dealing with back issues that were the more pressing concern.

"It was sore when it did happen. But I mean, any competitor that would've never wanted to come out would've did the same thing," Tagovailoa told reporters of his back, saying he hyperextended it. "So I was just trying my hardest to get back up and get the next play and run it."

Tagovailoa nearly fell after getting up following the hit that temporarily caused him to leave the game but told reporters his back "locked up" and caused the stumble.

The third-year quarterback has been brilliant to start the 2022 season, throwing for 925 yards, eight scores—though six of them came in a Week 2 comeback win over the Baltimore Ravens—and two interceptions in three games while completing 71.3 percent of his passes.

The Dolphins, in turn, are 3-0.

The addition of star wideout Tyreek Hill and the new offensive scheme put in place by first-year head coach McDaniel has appeared to help Tagovailoa take the next step after ho-hum efforts in his rookie and sophomore seasons.

If he's unable to go in Week 4 against the Bengals, backup Teddy Bridgewater would take over as the team's starter.

When the Miami Dolphins were forced to punt in their own end zone with 1:33 remaining in Sunday's game against the Buffalo Bills, punter Thomas Morstead made what is one of the funniest plays of the NFL season thus far.

Morstead punted the ball right into the backside of teammate Trent Sherfield before it rolled out of the back of the end zone for a safety. The play is now being referred to as the "butt punt," eerily similar to the New York Jets' notorious butt fumble.

Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill had the perfect response to the play while speaking with reporters after the game:

"I've never seen a butt punt…but next time [Sherfield's] gonna catch it with his butt cheeks. Because he's got strong butt cheeks," Hill joked.

Despite the safety, the Dolphins went on to defeat the Bills 21-19 to move to 3-0 on the season.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa's concussion check is going to be investigated by the NFL Players Association, per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.

Tagovailoa left Sunday's game against the Buffalo Bills late in the second quarter with what initially appeared to be a head injury. He took a hard hit from linebacker Matt Milano and got up wobbly before momentarily falling to a knee.

The Dolphins announced Tagovailoa was questionable to return with a head injury. He was back on the field for the start of the third quarter and led the Dolphins to a 21-19 victory.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Tagovailoa originally injured his back in the first quarter and the hit from Milano caused it to lock up. He was fully cleared after undergoing a concussion check:

Tagovailoa was hit late on a second-quarter completion to Jaylen Waddle and was taken out of the game. Milano was called for roughing the passer on the play.

The quarterback was 8-of-10 for 76 yards and a touchdown when he left the game before halftime. He finished 13-of-18 for 186 yards and a score.

Injuries have been a major storyline for Tagovailoa early in his NFL career.

In September of the 2021 season, the quarterback fractured his ribs, costing him three games. After he returned, Tagovailoa only remained healthy for three more games before a fractured finger on his throwing hand caused him to miss another week.

Durability was also a focal point for Tagovailoa heading into the NFL draft, as a hip injury ended his college career at Alabama.

The 2020 No. 5 overall pick has still shown flashes of solid play when healthy, including a hot start to this season. Through his first two games of 2022, he led the NFL with 739 passing yards and seven touchdowns to go with a 116.5 passer rating.

Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel provided clarification for the injury quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered during Sunday's win over the Buffalo Bills.

While the Dolphins announced Tagovailoa suffered a head injury before he eventually returned, McDaniel told reporters: "Tua went out with a lower back. He really got bent back on a quarterback sneak earlier, and I was kind of with everyone else when he hit his head."

It appeared to be a concerning situation when Tagovailoa stumbled when he was running, but McDaniel said: "His legs got wobbly because his back was loose. As he described it, his lower back was like gumby."

Yet ESPN's Adam Schefter reported there could be an investigation into the situation:

Fortunately for the Dolphins, their quarterback returned and helped secure a third straight victory to start the season.

While Sunday's win didn't have the fireworks that the Week 2 comeback against the Baltimore Ravens that included 28 Miami points in the fourth quarter had, the offense still came through in the clutch with a six-play, 72-yard touchdown drive to take the lead in the fourth quarter.

Things got dicey in the last two minutes when Buffalo cut the deficit to two with a safety on an ugly Dolphins punt that bounced off one of their own players and out the back of the end zone, but their defense stopped Josh Allen and Co. on the final drive.

The best news of all for Miami seemed to be that Tagovailoa did not suffer a head injury and was healthy enough to play through the back ailment.

He was just 13-of-18 for 186 yards and one touchdown against the Bills, but he avoided a turnover and is playing the best football of his career in the early going this season. After all, he threw for 469 yards and six touchdowns in the comeback win over the Ravens and seems to be more comfortable running the offense.

Having weapons like Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle can do that for a quarterback, and he will once again be under the spotlight in Week 4 with a road matchup against the reigning AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals.

Another win against a presumed AFC contender would be quite the statement after the victory over the Bills.

Tua Tagovailoa arm-strength concern trolls are awfully quiet on this Monday morning.

The Miami Dolphins quarterback threw for 469 yards and six touchdowns, spearheading a comeback from 21 points down in Sunday's 42-38 win over the Baltimore Ravens.

An NFL executive told Mike Sando of The Athletic that Tagovailoa looked like "a young Aaron Rodgers" out on the field.

That's high praise for a player who spent most of the offseason answering questions about the Dolphins' long-term commitment to him as a franchise quarterback. Miami won't have its first-round pick next April after what's been described as unprecedented levels of tampering with Tom Brady.

Ben Volin of the Boston Globe reported in April that there was a clandestine plan in place to have Brady retire, join the Dolphins front office and then unretire once the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a replacement lined up. All of this planning was done with Tagovailoa still on the roster and apparently being kept in the dark about the team trying to replace him.

After two weeks of the 2022 NFL season, Tagovailoa has thrown for seven touchdowns. Brady has thrown for two.

While there is no telling how Brady would have fared in this loaded Dolphins offense, it's hard to imagine him being better than Tagovailoa has been in leading Miami to a 2-0 start.