Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa left in the fourth quarter of his team’s blowout loss to the Baltimore Ravens this past Sunday due to a shoulder injury, but head coach Mike McDaniel does not seem too concerned about it.
“It’s not a huge blip on my radar right now,” McDaniel said, via Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN.
What makes the issue a bit worrisome is that it is a left shoulder injury, which is Tagovailoa’s throwing arm. Tagovailoa himself said that his shoulder was “good, just a little sore,” but it’s obviously still something worth keeping an eye on heading into Week 18.
The injury occurred when Tagovailoa scrambled for a nine-yard gain and took an awkward hit from Ravens linebacker Odafeh Oweh at the end of the play.
Tagovailoa went 22-for-38 with 237 yards, a couple of touchdowns and a pair of interceptions before exiting the humiliating 56-19 defeat.
On the season overall, the 25-year-old has thrown for a league-leading 4,451 yards to go along with 28 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He also leads the NFL in completion percentage (69.9 percent) and boasts a passer rating of 103.
With the loss to Baltimore, the Dolphins lost their chance to try and secure home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. They almost missed their opportunity to clinch the AFC East division crown.
As a result, Miami will now have to fight for the division title against the Buffalo Bills in a winner-take-all-game next Sunday. While the Dolphins have clinched a postseason berth either way, they would certainly like to host a playoff game in South Beach, so Tagovailoa’s health heading into the season finale is of the utmost importance.
We’ll see what Tua Tagovailoa does in practice this week.
The Dolphins are 11-5 on the year and have punched back-to-back playoff berths for the first time since the 2001-02 campaign. They have not won a playoff game since January 2001.
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