On Sunday, the Miami Dolphins come to Gillette Stadium to face the Patriots in a game that holds major playoff implications for both teams. Now, it looks like the Dolphins could be without their starting quarterback for that game.

Monday afternoon, a day after the Dolphins’ 26-20 loss to the Green Bay Packers, Miami head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has been placed in the NFL’s concussion protocol, for what is now the second time this season. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport later added that Tagovailoa’s status Sunday’s game “is now in doubt.”

This news came as a bit of a surprise, as Tagovailoa played the entirety of Sunday’s game, never coming off the field. Despite that, a play late in the first half is one many have pointed to as the possible cause of the concussion.

The play, shown below, came as Tagovailoa was hit releasing the ball, and his head snapped off the turf as he fell. Prior to that play, he was 9-for-12 for 229 yards and a touchdown with no picks. From that point on, he completed 7-of-13 passes for 81 yards, with no touchdowns but three interceptions, including a game-sealing pick that wasn’t close to the intended target.

The Dolphins were already scrutinized this year for mishandling Tagovailoa’s first concussion. In Week 3, the 24 year old briefly left the game with what was initially described as a back injury, and later returned. However, many suspected the injury to be a concussion due to the way Tagovailoa reacted to the hit, and the handling of the situation resulted in an NFLPA investigation.

Despite all of that, Tagovailoa was cleared to play in Week 4, but early in the game hit his head off the turf in a similar manner to which he did in the play above. He ended up being carted off the field after showing a fencing response, and taken to a local hospital. As a result of the events, the NFL and NFLPA revised the league’s concussion protocol later that week. Tagovailoa ended up missing two games.

Given all that, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Dolphins proceeded with elevated caution in regards to Tagovailoa. That would lead to Teddy Bridgewater getting the start on Sunday. Bridgewater has appeared in four games this year making one start. He’s completed 61.7 percent of his 60 pass attempts for 522 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions.

Even though Tagovailoa has struggled in general in recent weeks, Bridgewater starting still changes the outlook of the game given Tagovailoa’s career success against Bill Belichick’s defenses. In four career games against the Patriots he’s 4-0, having completed 68.5 percent of his passes for 726 yards with three touchdowns and two picks, with another three rushing touchdowns added to that total.

An update on Tagovailoa’s status will come on Wednesday. That’s when the teams will relese their first injury reports of the week.

Tua Tagovailoa 2022 game log

Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at [email protected].