Report: Tua Tagovailoa is ‘more banged up than people realize’ amid Dolphins playoff push

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is in danger of missing his first game in more than two months. He currently is listed as doubtful to play in Sunday’s bout against the Cleveland Browns due to a hip injury, and it looks like backup quarterback Tyler Huntley will start.

NFL insider Adam Schefter reported ahead of the Week 17 matchup between the Dolphins and Browns that Tagovailoa is “more banged up than people realize.”

Plenty of Dolphins fans likely remember that Tagovailoa suffered a concussion in a September loss to the Buffalo Bills and subsequently missed the team’s next four contests. Now, he’s dealing with something different.

Points were incredibly hard to come by for the Dolphins during the team’s four-game span without its starting quarterback earlier this season. Miami averaged just 10.0 points per contest during that stretch, and for perspective on just how low a mark that is, the New York Giants are scoring the fewest points per game this season with 14.3.

Even more importantly, the Dolphins came out on top in just one of those contests. They beat the lowly New England Patriots by a final score of 15-10 on Oct. 6.

With all that in mind, fans of the Dolphins have reasons to be concerned about how the squad’s offensive attack will fare on Sunday, assuming Tagovailoa is sidelined for Miami. But on the other hand, the Dolphins might not need a particularly great offensive showing to earn a victory over the Browns.

After all, the Browns have had one of the worst offenses in the NFL since the start of the campaign. They average just 16.3 points per game themselves. Cleveland (3-12) also owns the worst record of any team in the AFC North by a considerable margin and has lost every one of its last four contests.

If Huntley gets the start at quarterback, hopefully he’ll be able to shake off the rust (considering it’s been months since his last start) and lead the Dolphins to a win they need to keep their playoff hopes intact.