Louis Riddick rips into Dolphins over Tua Tagovailoa's injury history: "This team is not good enough”

Tua Tagovailoa has had a roller coaster journey in the NFL. Since being drafted by the Miami Dolphins in 2020, the Pro Bowl quarterback hasn't played a single season completely healthy. Tagovailoa has suffered several injury concerns and multiple concussions, raising questions about his longevity.

On Friday, ex-NFL star-turned analyst Louis Riddick shared his concerns about Tua Tagovailoa continuing as the Dolphins' starting quarterback. On NFL Live, Riddick highlighted the quarterback's injury history and urged the Dolphins to make necessary changes to have a successful season.

"He (Tua Tagovailoa) knows that the best ability that he has is his availability," Riddick said. "And he's just got to be smart. ... He knows the things he can control, he has to be better at. ... Otherwise, he's putting himself at danger, and then secondarily he is putting his team at risk.

"Now, Tua's longetivity and Tua's availability isn't just on him either. Mike McDaniel's got to make some adjustments here. ... This team is not good eough. ... They have to be better in that respect to where this team is not a high flying, high wire every single game, where everything is RPO, everythign is Tua being put on a play and everything is trying to hit big plays down the field. So there's a lot going on here at Miami. But it starts with Tua being smarter."

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Last season, Tua Tagovailoa, against the Bills, suffered his third concussion in two years. He missed four games as the Dolphins finished 8-9, failing to qualify for the playoffs.

Dolphins continue to place their faith in Tua Tagovailoa

Despite the quarterback's concerning injury history, the Dolphins aren't yet ready to move on from Tagovailoa. In July 2024, after picking up his fifth-year option, they gave the former Alabama star a contract extension.

Tagovailoa agreed a four-year deal with the Dolphins worth $212.4 million, which means he'll continue playing for them through the 2028 season. In five seasons, the quarterback has recorded 15,506 yards and 100 TDs passing in 64 games.

The Dolphins haven't made the playoffs during Tagovailoa's tenure. So, the upcoming season holds utmost importance for coach Mike McDaniel if he doesn't want to be on the hot seat. However, most of their success will depend on their starting quarterback's ability to remain healthy.

About the author

Priyam is a College Sports content executive at Sportskeeda with a master's in Advertising and Marketing Management and over two years of experience as a writer. When it comes to reporting, Priyam believes doing a technical deep dive is one of his biggest strengths and he loves to dissect plays on the field and factor out the strengths/weaknesses of players.

A fan of the Alabama Crimson Tide football team, Priyam sees Nick Saban as the greatest coach of all time. He is also rooting for Alabama quarterback Jalen Milore after following his progress over the years. The Michigan Wolverines football team is another of his favorite programs and it will be interesting to see how both these teams perform in new coaching eras.

When he’s not reporting, Priyam is usually at the gym or indulging in music. He has been a guitarist and a drummer for the past 17 years and finds his time of peace when playing music.

Know More

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Edited by Bhargav