Tua and Teddy Both Cleared from Concussion Protocol
Quarterbacks Tua Tagovailoa and Teddy Bridgewater officially are back and again available for the Miami Dolphins.
Both players are out of the concussion protocol after being cleared Saturday morning.
All indications are that neither will play against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 6, though Bridgewater is expected to be active and backing up rookie seventh-round pick Skylar Thompson in his first NFL start.
And it means that Tagovailoa will be back in the starting lineup for the Sunday night game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Oct. 23, on the night when the Dolphins' 1972 "perfect" team is honored and former Miami head coach Brian Flores returns to Hard Rock Stadium in his new role as Steelers senior defensive assistant and linebackers coach.
The news Saturday morning, reported by national media outlets first and confirmed by a league source, comes after both Tagovailoa and Bridgewater were able to practice fully Friday after first starting off on a limited basis.
Tagovailoa flew to Detroit and Pittsburgh to meet with specialists ahead of his return to practice, according to NFL Network reporter Tom Pelissero, going above and beyond the requirements of the concussion protocol.
It's pretty clear that Tua suffered no setbacks in his recovery from the scary-looking injury he sustained in the Week 4 Thursday night game against the Cincinnati Bengals, and he will have missed two starts when he returns to the lineup.
While there was some uncertainty regarding Tua's condition based on the optics of the Cincinnati game, the situation was different with Bridgewater and his quick return and departure from the concussion protocol wasn't surprising.
For those who might have missed it, Brigewater became the victim of the new concussion rules when a spotter determined he saw signs of ataxia after the quarterback was hit by Jets rookie "Sauce" Gardner on the Dolphins' first offensive snap.
