Mike McDaniel said Monday that he believes Tua Tagovailoa will play again this year.
The Miami Dolphins quarterback has missed the last three games after sustaining another concussion in a Week 2 loss to the Buffalo Bills. Tagovailoa must sit out Sunday's game at the Indianapolis Colts before he's eligible to return in Week 8.
While McDaniel doesn't have a timeline for Tagovailoa's return, he told reporters he expects the starting quarterback to come back this season.
"I do expect to see him playing football in 2024," McDaniel said Monday, via Pro Football Network's Adam Beasley. "But where that is exactly, we'll let the process continue since we still have time before he can even entertain anything. We'll make sure that he's diligent this week and assess after that."
A productive Tagovailoa would be good news for a floundering Dolphins offense, but fans remain concerned about the 26-year-old's long-term health. Considering he's already been diagnosed with three concussions, observers are still wondering if he should ever play football again.
"This is such a bad idea," a fan said.
"I don't understand why they would let him play," a fan wrote.
"I hope he at least wears the concussion cap," a fan said.
"The football fan in me is happy," a fan wrote. "The human ... I just don't know man. I don't want this guy's life to be ruined."
The Dolphins have scored 30 combined points in the last three games without Tagovailoa, who led the NFL with 4,624 passing yards last season. They went into a Week 6 bye with a 2-3 record and league-worst 12.0 points per game.
Tagovailoa's troubling history of head injuries has caused uncertainty about his future. McDaniel was reluctant to address his quarterback's playing status while waiting for him to consult medical experts.
"It is exciting that I do believe he'll play football this year," McDaniel said, per ESPN's Marcel Louis-Jacques. "I never went down that rabbit hole of whether he would or wouldn't, because I've learned through circumstance that's the wrong question to be asking. The right questions are completely, 100 percent toward the human being and the player."
Related: Mike McDaniel Announces Update On Tua Tagovailoa Entering Week 6