Tagovailoa is still dealing with a right hip injury that he sustained at Houston on Dec. 15 and aggravated on a hit against San Francisco the next week.
“It looks like the way I approached the week was probably smart,” said McDaniel, who had Huntley take more practice reps that Tagovailoa this week. “I see it as unlikely that Tua will see any action.”
Tagovailoa said Friday he was “frustrated” with not being available for his team for its must-win regular-season finale. He indicated he wanted to play last week at Cleveland, but doctors did not allow it, recommending that he give the injury more time to heal.
“If the cards play out the way they should, and the way we know and think they can, I'm going to be available next week," Tagovailoa said. "There's no if ands or buts. I'll be playing. That's for sure.”
The Dolphins are still in the hunt for the last AFC wild-card spot. Miami needs to win Sunday and have Denver lose to Kansas City — which will start quarterback Carson Wentz and rest the majority of its starters — to earn a playoff berth.
“It's tough," Tagovailoa said. "It's tough for any competitor to have to sit out when the season's on the line and you know you can do more. But that just tells you how much trust and respect we have for Snoop.”
Huntley completed 22 of 26 passes for 225 yards with one passing touchdown and one rushing against Cleveland.
McDaniel indicated there has been progress from where Tagovailoa was with the injury last week, when it hadn't healed as quickly as the team hoped. McDaniel said then that Tagovailoa was not medically cleared to play, and it was "not safe" for him to take the field.
Tagovailoa was asked after Friday's practice what would be the risk of further damage if he were to take the field.
“I don’t know if anything could be worse than what it is right now," he said, " but — I don’t know. This is just what the doctors are telling me is right for myself, and things of that nature. But I want to be out there. That’s for sure. But it’s just a risk for myself to be out there.”
It's a more difficult injury to measure than something like a bruise, McDaniel said, but he clarified that Tagovailoa's bone is in tact.
“A bruise would be like pain tolerance,” McDaniel said, "and that's something that I think Tua wishes it was just a pain issue. It's quite literally being able to have the strength to do what we ask him to do, as well as protecting himself from a very serious injury if we don't treat it appropriately.
"I wouldn't say it was a bruise, but it's kind of a unique muscle issue.”
McDaniel also said surgery would not solve the issue. Tagovailoa has had hip surgery before when he dislocated his right hip while in college at Alabama in 2019, which prematurely ended his season.
“It's not a surgical solution," McDaniel said. "It is a ‘stop aggravating this by pushing through’ and try to regain some security and strength. So it's time.”
Tagovailoa will end the regular season with 11 starts — his fewest since starting nine games his rookie season. He threw for 2,867 yards and completed a career-high 72.9% of his passes with 19 passing touchdowns and seven interceptions.
He has only played one full season — in 2023 — since entering the NFL in 2020. In 17 regular-season games, Tagovailoa led the NFL in passing yards and threw for a career-high 29 touchdowns, earning a four-year, $212 million contract extension in the offseason.
Tagovailoa missed four games earlier this season when he went on injured reserve after being concussed on a scramble against Buffalo in Week 2.
He was diagnosed with two concussions in 2022, one of which briefly knocked him unconscious, and missed four full games and a playoff game.
In 2021, Tagovailoa fractured several ribs in a Week 2 game against Buffalo and missed the next three games.
Tagovailoa said he will go into this offseason looking for ways to better protect himself.
“Obviously the concussions have been a thing," he said, "and then off that, other injuries that have stacked up with the concussions to where I'm missing games. It's frustrating. That's the frustrating part. That's something to take into consideration for myself, for the team and just moving forward to stay available for more than one season. That's for sure.”
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Credit: AP
Credit: AP