What a night it was for the Buffalo Bills and the Miami Dolphins. The Bills started with a bang and Tua Tagovailoa had an ace in his pocket. He neutralized the score in the first quarter, but things went sideways Q2 onwards. Tagovailoa’s exit from the game was emotional, but before that happened, people didn’t shy away from giving their dead hones opinion of him.

One of those people were Larry Csonka, Don Shula’s protégé and the Miami Dolphins Hall of Famer, who insisted Tua to get out of the Hard Rock Stadium. He took to X and wrote, “If I’d gone through a half like that with Shula I’d go straight to the parking lot, not the locker room Hope they find some fire for 2nd half.”

In hindsight, Csonka’s might want to edit that post, considering Tua’s concussion in the third quarter. Let’s look at the chain of events that le to Tua landing in concussion protocol. Throwing 2 picks in a game is bad, but an additional pick six? That’s a crucification. Ja’Marcus Ingram was on Tua’s tail since the start of the game. A flamboyant pass intended for Grant DuBose found its way into the hands of Ingram somehow. Tua wasn’t in the wrong, though.

With about 40 seconds remaining in Q1, things got even worse. The QB overestimated Robbie Chosen’s speed and overthrew the ball, only to be picked off by Christian Benford, who ran it the other way. At this point, Miami was tied 7-7 with Buffalo.

“Tua likes to anticipate, get the ball out early and here he and #84 [Chosen] were not on the same page,” said the commentator. However, the straw that broke the camel’s back came in the third quarter.

Tua Tagovailoa’s unexpected second half

With a comfortable 14 point lead, the Bills ended the first half. Another pick came in Q3 on Miami’s 3 and 5 with 9:36 remaining on the clock . The Tua faced a blitz, stepped back and aired the ball in haste. With no receiver in sight, Ja’Marcus Ingram got another chance to outsmart Tagovailoa.

Later, Miami was plagued with Ingram’s pick 6 that led to a 31 yard TD run. It was at the point when things started going south for the Miami team. Tagovailoa took a head injury in the third quarter when he ambitiously set out to gain some yards on the fourth and four and hit Damar Hamlin’s. Tua went down and stayed there for a few seconds. Luckily, he could get up and walk away on his own.

This is heartbreaking, especially after he scored a 4-year, $212.4 million extension. He’s on the NFL’s concussion protocol and we don’t know the duration of his hiatus. He was joined by his wife Annah and two children in the locker room.

To get back no the field, Tagovailoa has to clear examinations form the team doctor and an unaffiliated neuro-trauma consultant. The QB completed 17 of his 25 passes today and scored a touchdown with a 5-yard pass to De’Von Achane before leaving.