By Henry McKennaFox Sports AFC East Writer
The Miami Dolphins have posted a handful of wild wins this season, including two fourth-quarter comebacks, to become the last undefeated team in the AFC.
Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins rallied against the Buffalo Bills in Week 3 despite trailing in the fourth quarter. Tagovailoa led a fourth-quarter touchdown drive that created a lead Buffalo couldn’t overcome. And in Week 2, Miami beat the Baltimore Ravens after erasing a 21-point deficit in a historic comeback.
Against the Cincinnati Bengals, the Dolphins couldn’t come back. They suffered their first loss, 27-15.
The difference in Week 4? The Dolphins didn’t have Tua.
Tagovailoa suffered head and neck injuries while being sacked in the second quarter Thursday night. The third-year quarterback was taken off the field on a stretcher and taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.
When the Dolphins needed a game-winning drive from second quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, the veteran threw an interception. The Dolphins trailed by just five points with three minutes left in the game. They were at the Cincinnati 26-yard line. And Bridgewater gave up football.
The quarterback appeared to have a miscommunication with tight end Mike Gesicki, who broke his route at the same moment Bridgewater fumbled the ball. Bridgewater threw the ball as if he thought Gesicki was going to keep running. Vonn Bell intercepted the pass and his 36-yard return helped put Cincinnati in position for the game’s deciding score.
To be clear, Tua threw an interception on a deep pass before leaving the game with the injury. He wasn’t perfect.
And Bridgewater actually completed the game’s longest pass, a 64-yard pass to Tyreek Hill. The backup quarterback finished with 193 yards, a touchdown and an interception in just over two quarters of play. He was solid.
But he was not the finisher that Tua has been, with decisive drives for touchdowns when the team needed them most. In that situation, Bridgewater threw the crucial pick.
Tagovailoa left the field on a stretcher and was taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital where he was left conscious and with movement in all his limbs. The Dolphins expected him to be released from the hospital to fly with the team back to Miami, according to multiple reports.
“That was a scary moment. He was evaluated for a concussion and he’s in concussion protocol. … It was an emotional moment,” Miami coach Mike McDaniel said after the game.
Tagovailoa’s brutal injury was particularly hard to see in light of what happened to him last week.
In Week 3, the Dolphins quarterback took a big hit against the Bills and landed on his back and head. He came out shaking his head and stumbling, sometimes struggling to his feet and needing the help of his offensive linemen to stay upright. He left the game to undergo NFL concussion monitoring and was not diagnosed with a concussion. Instead, the team said he had a back injury.
McDaniel confirmed again Thursday night that Tagovailoa passed the concussion check in Week 3.
“Otherwise we would have reported him with a head injury,” McDaniel said. “For me, as the head coach here, I’m not going to shirk that kind of situation.”
The NFLPA didn’t wait long before announcing that it would launch an investigation into Tagovailoa’s concussion checkup in Week 3 to make sure the neutral doctor, who performed the exam, did it correctly. The Players Association issued a statement after seeing Tagovailoa’s concussion in Week 4.
In the end, the Dolphins were without their quarterback for the second half of the game. They also didn’t have their best cornerback, Xavien Howard. And those two wounds hurt.
Howard left the game in the third quarter with a thigh and groin injury. The star cornerback was clearly struggling and gave up a 59-yard touchdown to Tee Higgins. But his departure made things worse.
Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow suddenly enjoyed more success throwing downfield and had an easier time attacking backups: Kader Kohou, who gave up a 43-yard reception to Tyler Boyd, and Keion Crossen, who struggled for keep up with this elite group of receivers.
The Dolphins’ passing offense couldn’t match that. Hill may have enjoyed 10 catches for 160 yards and a touchdown, but Jaylen Waddle had just two catches for 39 yards. Miami’s offense has depended on both players enjoying big games with problems in their running game.
Without central figures on either side of the ball in Howard and Tagovailoa, Miami couldn’t muster the same magic it did in the first three weeks. And if Tagovailoa is forced to miss games, the Dolphins might have to worry about how they’ll stay competitive without their quarterback.
Bridgewater’s shortcomings came down to a single shot. If he hadn’t thrown that interception, the game might have ended differently. And if it was simply a miscommunication, then the Dolphins can feel good about fixing it and further preparing Bridgewater as a potential Week 5 starter.
Before joining FOX Sports as a reporter for the AFC East, Henry McKenna spent seven years covering the Patriots for USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Boston Globe Media. Follow him on Twitter at @McKennAnalysis.
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