Jalan Braxton
Tau Tagovailoa, a NFL player with the Miami Dolphins, suffered a concussion on Sept. 25
during a matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals. Many feel that game officials failed to handle the incident with proper concussion protocol.
This incident has raised discussions across the globe and the community is urging the people in charge to take concussions seriously and properly enforce a concussion protocol.
According to CBSNews.com, many questioned if Tagovailoa should have even been playing on that night, as it appeared he suffered a head injury five days before in the matchup against the Buffalo Bills.
Daylen Foster, a journalism and media studies major from Biloxi, Miss., said that the medical
experts should do a better job making sure players do not get critically injured on the field.
“If I was the coach or one of the medical experts, I would have made sure that none of this has occurred,” said Foster. “If I were a football player with how they handled the situation, I wouldn’t be out there. The NFL needs to change their protocols because the football players safety should come first.”
Andrew Hills, a marketing major from Natchez, Miss, said he is a Tua Tagoviloa fan. He also thinks that the protocol should have been handled better.
“Concussions have been a huge problem in the football scene. and the protocol needs some
changes done to it,” said Hills. “However, I will commend them for making sure Tau Tagovailoa
is recovering. I am a little sad that this might end his career though.”
Medical experts and other football professionals feel that Tagovailoa should most definitely consider retiring.
However, the NFL is supposed to implement a new concussion protocol soon helping to raise awareness and handle incidents properly at every level of football.
One of the new protocols will include benching a player who shows ataxia. According to the
CBS report, ataxia is defined as abnormality of balance/stability, motor
coordination or dysfunctional speech caused by a neurological issue. Per the
joint NFL-NFLPA statement, if a player is diagnosed with this ataxia by any
club or neutral physician involved in the protocol, he is prohibited from
returning to the game.
Dewayne Goodmen, a coach from Vicksburg High School, said that a change in protocols within
the NFL will take time but he hopes in the future concussions will be less severe.
“It’s a good thing that Tagovailoa is doing better, even though he has to have an early
retirement,” Goodmen said. “Concussions are no joke, they can have long-lasting effects. He needs to retire for his safety’s sake.”
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