It was a fun three-year run. It had plenty of ups and downs and, despite him not playing in the game, ended with the Miami Dolphins making it back to the playoffs for the first time since the 2016 season.
But even with that, what seems to be the never-ending saga of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and his battles with concussions that took place this season is evidence that it's time for the Dolphins to move on.
Since being drafted by Miami with the fifth overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, Tagovailoa has been someone who has been a polarizing figure for the franchise. He was loved to what some would call an obsession-like level by fans who gladly dub themselves the "TuAnon" army.
He's also someone who came into the league after suffering a total of two high ankle sprains, a dislocated hip, a broken nose and a concussion during his final 12 games as the quarterback for the Alabama Crimson Tide. Despite those red flags, the Dolphins looked at the strength of his arm when healthy and thought he was the right move.
Get South Florida local news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC South Florida newsletters.
Tua shows flashes of brilliance in his first season, starting nine games and giving fans plenty of reasons why he should be the starter. A rib injury in Week 2 of the 2021 season would sideline him for four games and gave fans the excuse that if he were healthy, Miami would've made it back to the playoffs.
His health was not just the main talking point of the 2022 season for the Dolphins, but also for the entire National Football League. Tagovailoa suffered two concussions that were diagnosed and led to him being placed in the league's concussion protocol, causing him to miss four more games. The way he was handled after an injury in Week 3 against Buffalo that many thought looked like a concussion is what led to controversy surrounding the treatment of the injury.
The last concussion Tagovailoa suffered, which came in the first half of the Dolphins' loss on Christmas Day to Green Bay, has been bad enough that he remains in the protocol over a month later and will miss next weekend's Pro Bowl.
Sports
Miami did everything this past season to show Tua was the quarterback for this team. They traded away plenty of draft picks to get players like superstar wide receiver Tyreek Hill and running back Jeff Wilson. They spent money to make the defense a unit that actually stopped teams from scoring over parts of the season - and yet, Miami still finished the season with just a .500 record.
If we are just focusing on the football aspect with Tua (since we all know he should legit consider retirement with the recent concussion issues), it's clear the experiment is not going to work. Tagovailoa has to be healthy for that to take place and so far that doesn't seem to be the case.
