Final hurdle revealed for Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa to play in Week 8 vs. Cardinals

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald claims that Miami Dolphins signal-caller Tua Tagovailoa is on course to take the field against the Arizona Cardinals on Oct. 27.

“Nearly six weeks after sustaining a concussion, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is expected to begin practicing this week, putting him on track to play at home next Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals if he gets through the week without any issues,” Jackson wrote.

“While the Dolphins hope he can play against Arizona, that decision cannot be made until two doctors authorize that he’s able to go through the final stage of concussion protocol.”

Tagovailoa has been down for the count since he suffered a head injury in Miami’s Week 2 loss to the Buffalo Bills back on Sept. 12, and he won’t take the field in the team’s matchup against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.

The Dolphins have certainly felt his absence, as without Tagovailoa leading the way, points have been hard to come by for the team. It’s worth noting that with a healthy Tagovailoa, Miami had one of the better offenses in the NFL during the 2023 regular season. After all, the Dolphins scored 29.2 points per game, the second-most of any team in the league.

But through five games this season, the Dolphins have had the worst offense in the NFL from a statistical standpoint. Miami is averaging the fewest points of any of the 32 NFL teams with just 12.0 per game. For perspective, the New England Patriots average the second-fewest points per game in the league at 14.1, and New England owns just a 1-6 record on the season.

Plus, in the three games that Tagovailoa has been sidelined for, Miami’s offense has mustered just 30 points in total, including only three in the team’s blowout loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Sept. 22. Skylar Thompson got the start at the quarterback spot in that game and underperformed, as he totaled barely over 100 passing yards before he exited the contest with a rib injury.

Tagovailoa’s extended absence has had a trickle-down effect on Miami’s top receivers such as Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. For instance, Hill totaled the most receiving yards of any Dolphins player in a single season when he racked up 1,799 during the 2023 regular season.

However, thus far in his third season as a member of the Dolphins, he’s averaging 57.2 receiving yards per game —his lowest average since the 2016 campaign when he was a rookie — and has just one receiving touchdown to his name.