Rejoice, Fins fans!
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa will be back under center in Week 8 when the Dolphins host the Cardinals, the team announced Friday.
Tagovailoa hasn’t seen game action since Miami’s Week 2 matchup against Buffalo when he suffered a concussion that landed him on injured reserve.
In the third quarter of that game, the signal-caller rushed up the middle of the field on fourth down and barreled head-first into the chest of safety Damar Hamlin.
Tagovailoa, who had previously suffered two concussions during the 2022 season and one during his college years at Alabama, walked off the field and into the locker room under his own power but was diagnosed with a concussion shortly thereafter.
The Dolphins ended up losing their contest against Buffalo, as well as three of their next four without their star quarterback.
Skylar Thompson and Tyler Huntley have both seen the field in Tagovailoa absence but neither has proved particularly effective.
In those four contests, Miami mustered just 40 total points. Their lone win came when they bested the lowly Patriots in Foxborough, 15-10.
Remarkably, even with a measly 2-4 record, the Dolphins are second place in the AFC East.
In his only complete contest of the season thus far in Week 1 vs Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars, Tagovailoa completed 23-of-37 passes for 338 yards and one touchdown in a 20-17 win.
Six different Dolphins caught passes in that game— including Tyreek Hill (seven), De’Von Achane (seven) and Jaylen Waddle (five).
The Dolphins’ star-studded receiver corps should be among the most tantalizing in the league but have been made largely docile in recent weeks given the instability under center.
Now though, with Tagovailoa set to return, the sun in Miami shines bright once again.
No one is more excited than Hill.
As he told reporters, “we’re back, baby! Strike up the f—ing band!”
