Tua tumbles, stumbles, puts it behind him as Dolphins prep for Bengals | STATE OF FOOTBALL
“You gonna believe me, or your lyin’ eyes?”
The old punchline came to mind Sunday when the broadcasters mentioned something about Tua Tagovailoa’s back.
We were coming to grips with the thought of Teddy Bridgewater taking over the rest of the way. Tua and the Dolphins gave the Bills all they wanted, the thinking went, but it just wasn’t meant to be.
Next thing you know, Tua is back on the field after halftime, and we’re being told he tweaked his back, which led to his stumble as he got off the turf late in the second quarter.
It wasn’t just us saying hmmmm. The NFL Players Association also wants more details. As attention to head injuries has expanded greatly over the past generation, one of the NFLPA’s missions has been protecting players from themselves.
They want confirmation that Tua was indeed tested for a potential head injury, and that he came through it fine.
To hear the Dolphins tell it, they followed the book with Tua. We assume the penalty for doing anything else would be mammoth. The league and the union would both want to make an example of the Dolphins to prevent anyone else from trying such shenanigans again.
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So let’s not doubt Mike McDaniel, Tua or anyone else when they say Tua showed no troubling signs upon a halftime exam.
But a lot of us aren’t buying the official reason for his stumble.
Tua got shoved backwards, landed on his fanny and back, followed by the familiar snapping of the back of his head to the turf. Guys often get up from such things without issue. Occasionally they don’t. Other times, they get up but are wobbly.
If his back hurts and if, say, the pain sends him to a knee, you know what usually happens? He GRABS HIS BACK! He doesn't just give his head a shake and walk slowly back toward teammates.
You don’t need Columbo or some forensics expert to tell you that.
Anyway, it doesn’t matter now. What matters, though, is Tua reportedly dealing with back and ankle pain — on a short game week, by the way, against a Bengals team that might’ve righted itself this past Sunday.
The Dolphins, who won eight of their last nine last season and their first three this season — including Sunday's trench-warfare win over the mighty Bills — are suddenly everyone's darling. If the newly earned hype carries through a Thursday nighter in Cincy, a lot of folks will be shaking their heads and looking for the smelling salts.
Rank & File
The weekly ranking of Florida’s seven big-league college football programs, based on results versus expectations, current trends, and yesterday’s closing price on two-year treasury notes . . .
1. FSU (4-0): Wake Forest at home. For the first time, the annual Florida-FSU game will be played on a Friday night — Nov. 25, to end the regular season for both schools. This week, FSU announced the game is already sold out. Are some folks getting a little too excited about current trends? Maybe, but nothing changes this week — Seminoles 32, Deacons 24.
2. UCF (3-1): SMU at home (Sunday). The Knights handled Georgia Tech last week, as expected. Tech then fired its coach and athletic director. Should that strike you as an insult? "Lose to UCF, we fire you." SMU’s Rhett Lashlee is in his first year, so he’s safe for now — Knights 23, Mustangs 17.
3. Florida (2-2): Eastern Washington at home (Sunday). Washington State had to change travel plans when Hurricane Ian blew this game from Saturday to Sunday. In the immortal words of the Zooker, “it’s not their fault there was a hurricane” — Gators 40, Eagles 17.
4. FAU (2-3): at North Texas. Both of these teams are 1-0 in the C-USA and really can’t afford to lose if they hope to keep pace with Western Kentucky this year. As the trendy ad campaigns suggest, Go Green — Mean Green 35, Owls 32.
5. Miami (2-2): off this week. Common sense said it takes time to get an off-kilter program like Miami back on the beam, so after that shocking loss to Middle Tennessee last week, the faithful have been understanding and are preaching patience. Right? Ha! It’ll be interesting to see how many grandstand seats go unused next week when North Carolina comes calling.
6. USF (1-3): East Carolina at “home.” The Bulls can’t buy a break. With Ian pointed directly at the Tampa Bay area, USF arranged to move Saturday’s game four hours southeast, to FAU’s home stadium in Boca Raton. Right on cue, Ian’s path started moving southward — Pirates 29, Bulls 17.
7. FIU (1-2): at New Mexico State. Here we have the resistible force facing the moveable object. FIU’s Panthers lost last week to Western Kentucky, 73-zip. State’s Aggies lost earlier this year to Wisconsin, 66-7. Advantage: State — Aggies 29, Panthers 17.
Sunday School
1. Miami (3-0): at Cincinnati (1-2), Thursday night. It’s easy and fun to jump on the bandwagon right now, but it sure looked like the Fins left a lot on the field Sunday, particularly heading into a short week — Bengals 27, Dolphins 20.
2. Tampa Bay (2-1): Kansas City (2-1) at home. One of these Super Bowl contenders has to lose a second straight game. Last Sunday, Tom Brady looked like the mid-management supervisor who grabbed a few guys from I.T. and tried to run an NFL offense. This week, he dips into the loading dock for a bit more talent, but it’s just not enough — Chiefs 23, Bucs 21.
3. Jacksonville (2-1): at Philadelphia (3-0). Ranking the Jags at No. 3 here was far from automatic. Yes, in the end it was easy, given the two teams above them, but what state has a better No. 3 NFL franchise? Again, we’re big on trends, but two trends are in play here, and only one of them is trending in front of their rabid fan base — E-A-G-L-E-S 27, Duval 17.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Hurricane Ian rumbles, Tua stumbles, Dolphins win, Tom Brady searches
