Passing attacks have been grounded: OVERREACTION

After the opening weekend of the 2023 season saw just 37 touchdown passes across the league, this year’s Week 1 air-score tally dipped even lower to 34. The good folks over at NFL Research point out that this stands in stark contrast to the span from 2018 through 2022, when there were an average of 54.8 passing TDs in Week 1. Only two quarterbacks — Tua Tagovailoa (338) and Matthew Stafford (317) — threw for 300-plus yards last week, marking the first time since 2005 that fewer than three players hit the mark. Of 32 starting QBs, 17 just threw for fewer than 200 yards in the season opener.

The obvious thing to glean from the above facts is that offenses are starting slower these days. Why? Well, I think you can look at recent changes to training camp and the escalating trend of sitting starters during the preseason. For many offenses, Week 1 is the zygote stage. Teams used to get more reps in during camp and the preseason. Now, by making camps safer, and with many stars sitting out the preseason, growth doesn’t happen in the petri dish — it comes live, in real regular-season action. With that, offenses are still ramping up after the new campaign kicks off. This is particularly true of offensive lines, which take time to coalesce, something padless practices don’t always provide.

The NFL has been fighting a scoring malaise for a few years, with defenses hell-bent on taking away explosive plays, but let’s give it at least a month before we sound any alarm bells. After all, passing might have been down, but total scoring was at 45.8 total points per game, which is higher than last year’s Week 1 average (41.0).

DETROIT

It’s the Lions – and not the 49ers – who are getting the most NFC Super Bowl and NFC Championship action among bettors reports David Perdum of ESPN.com:

the consensus second-most-popular pick to win the Super Bowl has been the Detroit Lions (+1000), who have attracted 9% of the bets and 12% of the handle on ESPN BET. BetMGM, DraftKings and FanDuel all report similar figures to rank Detroit behind only Kansas City for the most tickets and money.

The Lions are even more popular in the NFC Championship market, where they are taking upward of 30% of the handle at most of the major sportsbooks, with odds around +550. There’s little consensus on who might win the conference from there, with the Chicago Bears, Eagles, Packers, Los Angeles Rams and reigning conference champion 49ers all taking up varying levels of action across the marketplace.

It’s the second season in a row that public support has been behind Detroit after Dan Campbell’s squad first showed a spark during the 2022 season.

“We had way more liability on them last season because they opened up at 40-to-1, 30-to-1, whatever they were. Now at 12-to-1, it’s a much easier pill for the book to swallow,” Cipollini said. “A lot of Michigan bettors for us last season were definitely all over the Lions, and I think they put their division winner tickets or whatever winnings they had from last season right back onto them for this season, because we’re definitely taking a lot of action on them again.”

GREEN BAY

Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com on how Matt LaFleur is preparing QB MALIK WILLIS to start Sunday.

Blaine Gabbert isn’t coming back to help Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur do what they did in 2018, when he led his new team to an unlikely victory after becoming the Tennessee Titans’ starting quarterback in Week 2 after Marcus Mariota was injured in the opener.

What Gabbert can do, however, is offer some perspective and perhaps a little comfort in knowing that Malik Willis isn’t facing an impossible task if he is indeed thrown into the QB1 spot for Sunday’s home opener against the Indianapolis Colts (1 p.m. ET, Fox) after Jordan Love suffered a sprained MCL in his left knee during Friday’s 34-29 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

After all, with LaFleur as his offensive coordinator in Tennessee, Gabbert was able to keep the Titans from an 0-2 start. The Packers haven’t started 0-2 since 2006.

“The best part about Matt is he’s going to do in his game plan what the strength of the quarterback is,” Gabbert said in a phone interview this week. “That’s the sign of a great coach, and Matt’s one of the best I’ve been around, and you’ve seen that since he’s been in Green Bay.

“So he’s going to put Malik in the best position possible. Malik still has to go out and execute that game plan. There will definitely be some bumps along the way, especially with him getting there like 15 days ago.”

At least Gabbert, who is currently unsigned after playing for the Chiefs last season, had a little more time in LaFleur’s system when he helped the Titans to a 20-17 win over the Texans, though it was his first start for Tennessee and LaFleur’s first season as a playcalling offensive coordinator.

“It’s not the first time I’ve been a part of a team where we’ve had to rely on our backup quarterback,” LaFleur said.

It’s not even the first time he’s had to do it in Week 2, but it is the first time he’s had to do it with a quarterback who still doesn’t know his way around town — let alone the intricacies of LaFleur’s offense.

The Packers traded for Willis on Aug. 26 — just 18 days ago. At least Gabbert had been with the Titans that entire offseason.

“He ended up playing a decent amount for us that year,” LaFleur said of Gabbert, who appeared in eight games. “You’ve got to try to figure out what can put your team in the best possible position, what he feels most comfortable with and get him the reps throughout the course of the week.”

Gabbert wasn’t lights-out in that first start (13-of-20, 117 yards, 1 TD), but he didn’t turn the ball over. And though the Titans also won the next game with Gabbert as the starter, he left early because of a concussion.

“The biggest thing is don’t try and do too much,” Gabbert said. “You don’t have to try to win the game in the first quarter, the second quarter or even the third quarter. Stay in it. Get your feet under yourself. It’s a new system. It’s going to be moving fast, and you’re going to be processing it a tick slow, just trying to get the playcall in the headset, regurgitate the play in the huddle and get to the line of scrimmage. Take your time.”

One of the best recent examples of a backup quarterback having success is Cooper Rush, who has a 5-1 record as a replacement starter for the Dallas Cowboys, including a 4-1 mark in 2022 that kept his team in playoff contention.

Rush echoed Gabbert’s thoughts on how Willis should approach it.

“Don’t do too much,” Rush said. “You’ve got to trust in yourself. You’re here for a reason. You can play at this level. Go be yourself. Just play smart football and … just be smart was part of the mindset. Yeah, just go out there and play and not worry about much.”

Gabbert also suggested that Willis spend as much time as possible with LaFleur this week.

“Really get together with him, so you’re confident in the plays being called and that they’re the ones that you know and you trust yourself to execute at a high level,” Gabbert said.

When asked whether he’s told LaFleur what he is or is not comfortable with at this point, Willis on Wednesday said: “I’m not sure that we’re there yet. We’re just taking it day by day, and we’ll get to that point closer to game time if that’s necessary.”

Said LaFleur: “He’s got to communicate to us and let us know where he’s at. And certainly we’ll go through it at the end of the week and probably ‘X’ out some things, if he’s not very comfortable with it, and star the things that he really likes and that he has more comfortability with.

“It’s not like we’re dealing with a rookie here that has no background. A lot of these offenses do similar things. It’s just, how do you do them? When do you do them? Who are you putting where? So we take that all into account.”

KANSAS CITY

Bengals CB CAM TAYLOR-BRITT gives the Chiefs some fodder in their preparations for Sunday.  Nick Shook of NFL.com:

Xavier Worthy’s NFL debut justified the preseason hype that was building around him.

Just don’t count Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt among his supporters.

“Speed. That’s about it. He can run straight,” Taylor-Britt said of Worthy on Wednesday. “Run jet sweeps and just run straight. Can’t do too much else. That’s about it. I feel like you put your hands on him — he’s only 100-something pounds — you put hands on him, you’ll stop the speed. So basically get hands on him.”

Worthy made waves in the football world by breaking the 40-yard dash record at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine, posting a blazing 4.21-second sprint that inspired a memorable reaction from fans at Lucas Oil Stadium in March. Since then, he’s been known as a speedster capable of stretching the field for the Chiefs, potentially providing an element they’ve lacked since the departure of Tyreek Hill.

His first outing gave fans a glimpse of what could be, taking an end around down the numbers on the right side of the field, knifing through the Ravens defense at top speed for a 21-yard touchdown. His second trip to the end zone was even easier, sprinting past Ravens corner Marlon Humphrey into a wide-open area of the field before catching a pass from Patrick Mahomes for a 35-yard score.

The second score was a result of broken coverage, not Worthy’s elite speed. But that didn’t quell the hype, and it’s clear the Bengals — a recent rival of the Chiefs — aren’t interested in feeding the machine.

David Perdum of ESPN.com on how oddsmakers and gamblers are looking at the Chiefs and their chances of a three-peat.

What are the odds of a Chiefs three-peat?

With two Super Bowl victories in as many seasons, the Chiefs are already in rarefied air and will cross into unprecedented territory if they can capture a third consecutive Lombardi Trophy. Out of eight previous back-to-back Super Bowl champions, none have successfully completed the three-peat (although, the Green Bay Packers did three-peat as NFL champions two different times prior to the Super Bowl era).

The Chiefs’ future odds to do so this season are directly in line with previous would-be three-peaters, and they’re attracting the fervent betting action to match.

At +500 on ESPN BET, Kansas City’s odds to win Super Bowl LIX are the same as the past two repeat champions entering their potential three-peat season. The 2005 Patriots were tied for the best odds that preseason with the Indianapolis Colts and Philadelphia Eagles, while the 1999 Denver Broncos actually trailed the Minnesota Vikings (+450) in odds.

The previous three repeat champs — the 1994 Dallas Cowboys (+300), the 1990 San Francisco 49ers (+350) and the 1980 Pittsburgh Steelers (+240) — all showed shorter odds than the Chiefs show this year, and only the Cowboys were second on their odds board (behind the 49ers, who were +200 and ultimately won the title).

Team    Odds    Odds rank

Kansas City Chiefs (2024)          +500     1st

New England Patriots (2005)      +500     T-1st

Denver Broncos (1999)               +500     2nd (Vikings)

Dallas Cowboys (1994)                +300    2nd (49ers)

San Francisco 49ers (1990)        +350     1st

Pittsburgh Steelers (1980)          +240     1st

But again, none of these teams were able to pull off the three-peat. Still, that hasn’t stopped bettors from going to the window for Kansas City.

“It’s been largely one-way traffic with the Chiefs in terms of betting interest once again,” ESPN BET head of sportsbook Patrick Jay told ESPN.

The book has 17% of its Super Bowl futures handle on the Chiefs, and Patrick Mahomes has 20% of the handle to win MVP.

The Chiefs are also the handle leaders at BetMGM (18.7%), DraftKings (17%) and FanDuel (19%). Unsurprisingly, they lead the AFC Championship markets at all of the books as well.

The action, combined with the last Super Bowl win, saw their championship odds fall incrementally from +750 in January to their current position, per ESPN BET.

Aside from the future liability, Kansas City is sure to be a popular pick week to week as it pursues the elusive third straight Super Bowl.

“The Chiefs, obviously, are going to be a popular selection, and they’re more likely than not going to be a popular selection throughout the entire season,” Cipollini said. “I imagine any game that they’re playing in, we’re going to be rooting for whoever they’re playing against.”

BALTIMORE

Kevin Patra of NFL.com says you were wrong to think RB DERRICK HENRY would go to Baltimore and regain his All-Pro numbers.  But he’s still pretty useful.

Derrick Henry looks washed in Baltimore: OVERREACTION

If you want to put Henry’s usage in the BAD OMEN category, that’s fine. It probably depends on your expectations for the bulldozing back. If you thought he was still going to get 25 carries per game, you’re sorely disappointed. My vision entering the campaign was closer to the expectation John Harbaugh verbalized this week: Henry will be a complementary piece in this Lamar Jackson-led offense, not the engine.

The Ravens are better when Jackson has the ball in his hands. Plain and simple. Henry’s presence should help keep defenses honest, and he’ll likely have a few games in which Baltimore rides him heavily. But not most weeks. The presence of Justice Hill as a pass-catching back and questions along the offensive line will cap Henry’s ceiling. But he should still get the bulk of the red-zone carries as a goal-line battering ram. Henry’s $8 million-per-year contract told us in the offseason how the Ravens view him: as an important piece, but not an every-down bell cow like those making $5-10 million more. Calibrating expectations is important.

Henry had 13 carries for 46 yards last week against the Chiefs, 1 TD.

Jon Alfano of SI.com with more:

In Monday’s press conference, head coach John Harbaugh explained that Henry won’t be carrying the extreme workload he did earlier in his career with the Tennessee Titans.

“We didn’t bring Derrick [Henry] in here to be the guy that gets the ball 30 times a game,” Harbaugh told reporters. “He’s done that before. That’s really not the plan.”

This isn’t the first time Harbaugh and the coaching staff have mentioned Henry’s reduced workload, but it bears repeating after the opener. Not only is Henry 30 years old, but he’s led the NFL in carries in four of the past five seasons (would’ve been all five if he hadn’t gotten injured in 2021). He simply has a lot of of mileage on his body, so he may be better suited to a reduced role now.

However, that’s not the main reason for this decision. That would be the Ravens’ desire to diversify their offense as much as they reasonably can.

“The plan is Derrick, Lamar, Mark [Andrews], Isaiah [Likely], Zay [Flowers], ‘Bate’ [Rashod Bateman and] ‘Nelly’ [Nelson Agholor]. That’s kind of the plan in this offense going forward, so I think that evaluation will be best made over the course of the season.

“And I’m very confident, there are going to be games where Derrick is going to go for 100-plus [yards] or more, and you’re going to be asking me, ‘Why does Zay only have 2 catches?’ That’s probably going to happen during the course of the season, and that’s going to be good for us. That’s what we want to be. We want to be unpredictable that way. Where does the game take us as we get into the game?”

Even though Henry averaged just 3.5 yards per carry, Harbaugh was still pleased with the ground game as a whole. Baltimore rushed for 185 yards on the night, though Lamar Jackson accounted for nearly two-thirds of those yards by himself.

CINCINNATI

WR TEE HIGGINS says he did not fake an injury as positioning in his contract talks.  Cody Benjamin of CBSSports.com:

Tee Higgins did not suit up for the Cincinnati Bengals’ first game of the 2024 NFL season due to a hamstring injury, and he may not be available for Sunday’s Week 2 matchup, either. Now, the wide receiver is denying that he’s “faking an injury” for contract reasons, telling ESPN Thursday that fans suggesting as much are being illogical.

“I just don’t understand why fans think I’m faking an injury,” Higgins said, “when for me to get an extension for a contract, the deadline is over. I just don’t understand … It doesn’t make sense to me.”

Higgins signed the Bengals’ one-year franchise tag as a free agent this offseason, but failed to reach a long-term contract by the July 15 deadline for negotiating a multi-year extension. The fifth-year veteran previously sought a trade out of Cincinnati over a failure to strike a lucrative deal. He was outspoken about his commitment to the team upon his return for training camp.

“I had time to reflect and think,” Higgins said at the time. “I had long talks with my agent. A lot of back and forth about what I wanted to do. I just made the decision to sign the [franchise] tag. At the end of the day, I just wanted to come out here and try to win a Super Bowl. I’m happy with the decision I made. I’m here for the Bengals for the 2024 season. … Instead of holding out and waiting and just watching from afar, I’d rather be in the mix with the guys and grind it out with them. That’s how I’ve always been.”

It stands to reason that Higgins would prefer to be on the field to build his market for a future foray into free agency, especially after injuries robbed him of five games — and potentially contributed to the Bengals’ hesitance to hand him a long-term contract — in 2023. The receiver said as much Thursday.

“I want to go out there and give my teammates 100% of Tee Higgins, you know what I’m saying?” Higgins told ESPN. “I don’t want to give them 50%.”

CLEVELAND

The woman who waited four years to sue QB DESHAUN WATSON is scheduled to meet with NFL investigators.  Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.com:

The attorney representing the plaintiff in a civil lawsuit accusing Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson of sexual assault and battery told ESPN on Thursday that the woman will speak to the NFL within two weeks.

“We will be scheduling a meeting with the NFL and hope that can be accomplished in the next two weeks,” attorney Tony Buzbee wrote in an email. “We have a video and two additional witnesses for the NFL to speak with. I’ve personally never had confidence in the NFL’s disciplinary process but my client has chosen to engage it.”

According to the lawsuit, which was filed Monday in Harris County, Texas, the alleged actions occurred in October 2020 before Watson and a woman, identified as Jane Doe in the court filing, were set to have dinner at the woman’s apartment. Watson was a member of the Houston Texans at the time.

The NFL on Tuesday said it is reviewing the complaint under the personal conduct policy, but the league added that Watson will not be placed on the commissioner’s exempt list because there have been no formal charges and the league’s review just began.

Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said Wednesday that Watson will still start Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars but declined to comment on the lawsuit, deferring to a team statement released Tuesday.

In a statement released Wednesday, Buzbee said he reached out to Watson’s attorneys for months to resolve the matter privately.

Watson said that he found out about the lawsuit when it surfaced and that he was surprised to see the allegations. When asked about Buzbee’s claim of reaching out to Hardin’s office 10 months ago, Watson responded: “I’m not aware of that.”

Watson served an 11-game suspension in 2022 after more than two dozen women accused him of sexual assault and inappropriate conduct during massage sessions. A pair of Texas grand juries declined to pursue criminal charges against Watson, but he served his suspension after the NFL and the NFL Players Association reached a settlement in his disciplinary matter.

Watson also had to pay a fine of $5 million and undergo mandatory evaluation by behavioral experts and follow their suggested treatment program before being reinstated by the league.

Watson settled 23 of the 24 lawsuits filed against him in the summer of 2022.

The lawsuit filed Monday is unrelated to the two remaining active lawsuits (the one from summer 2022 plus one filed that October) from women who accused Watson of sexual misconduct during massage sessions.

In the earlier civil cases, a judge compelled the women suing Watson to use their actual names in court filings. Hardin told ESPN on Wednesday that he intends to ask the court to require the woman who sued Watson on Monday to also be identified by name in court filings.

In March 2022, the Browns traded six draft picks, including three first-round picks, for Watson and gave him a fully guaranteed $230 million deal, which was an NFL record at the time.

The suspension and injuries have limited Watson to just 13 starts with Cleveland.

BUFFALO

The DB’s thought that the Bills were headed for a fall doesn’t look very good after two games.  Frank Schwab of YahooSports.com:

The Buffalo Bills were surprisingly unbothered this offseason while everyone else wondered if their Super Bowl window had closed.

The Bills season ended with another crushing playoff loss. Then they traded Stefon Diggs, who had made four Pro Bowls in four Buffalo seasons, and didn’t make a big splashy move to replace him. Other longtime veterans were let go as the Bills got their salary cap in order. The reaction was generally that the Bills were in for a rough season.

On Thursday night, they still looked like a Super Bowl contender.

The Bills have owned the Miami Dolphins since drafting Josh Allen and that didn’t change in Week 2. Buffalo got three touchdowns from James Cook, another touchdown from the defense and cruised to a 31-10 wub. They’re 2-0 to start the season.

The Bills still have a good defense that flustered Tua Tagovailoa, who ended up leaving the game due to a concussion after a scary hit. Buffalo picked Tagovailoa off three times, including a pick-6 that practically finished the Dolphins’ chances. And Buffalo still has Allen at quarterback. That’s enough for them to still be one of the NFL’s most dangerous teams, or so it appears after two weeks.

Bills off to impressive start

The Bills started the season slowly. They trailed the Arizona Cardinals at home 17-10 at halftime of their opener. Over the next five quarters, Buffalo outscored Arizona and Miami by a combined score of 55-21.

Thursday night started great for Buffalo and not so much for Miami. Cook scored on a beautifully designed play that got him open in the flat on fourth down; he caught Allen’s pass and cruised 17 yards into the end zone. Tagovailoa threw two interceptions in the first quarter, the first time he had ever done that in his NFL career. Both turnovers seemed to be mistakes by receivers Grant DuBose and Robbie Chosen, players who didn’t have a single target between them in Week 1.

Cook scored a couple more touchdowns on the ground, giving him a hat trick before halftime. His third touchdown came after a magnificent third-and-12 throw on the move by Allen to Ty Johnson to the 1-yard line. By that point everyone was checking to see if they were facing Cook in their fantasy football matchup this week.

In the third quarter, the game got out of hand and the focus of it changed, too. Tagovailoa was under pressure and threw blindly on third down. It turned into an easy interception and touchdown return by Bills cornerback Ja’Marcus Ingram. That made the score 31-10.

The night got a lot worse for the Dolphins. Tagovailoa scrambled and ran for a first down on fourth-and-4, and because it was a fourth down he didn’t want to slide too early. He lowered his head and hit Bills safety Damar Hamlin, went down hard and couldn’t get up right away. He was ruled out shortly after with a concussion.

Tagovailoa said he had considered retirement after he suffered multiple concussions during the 2022 season. The concern for him after Thursday night isn’t just when he might return from this concussion, but for his long-term health.

Bills get a statement win

Since the Bills drafted Allen in 2018, they’re 12-2 against the Dolphins including a playoff win. Given the uncertainty over Tagovailoa, the Dolphins might not be a factor in the AFC East race this season.

The Bills look like they’re chasing more than just another division title. They have had some tough-luck playoff losses, but it’s still a team that can compete for a championship. Most of that is due to Allen, though the players around him on offense are contributing. It doesn’t seem like they are missing the veterans who they had to let go this offseason. Von Miller had a horrible 2023 but is making an impact early this season as he looks healthy, and his reemergence would be massive for the Bills’ defense.

The Bills and Dolphins came into Thursday night and it seemed like we would find out a lot about the hierarchy in the AFC East. Even before Tagovailoa left due to his latest concussion, the Bills made it clear that the Dolphins were still far behind them.

Maybe the Bills aren’t as much trouble as you might have heard this offseason.

MIAMI

Another concussion for QB TUA TAGOVIALOA.  Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN.com in the aftermath:

Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa left Thursday night’s 31-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills after sustaining a concussion in the third quarter, the third diagnosed concussion of his NFL career.

There was no immediate timeline for his return.

The injury occurred when Tagovailoa scrambled up the middle for a first down and made forcible contact with his helmet to the forearm of Bills safety Damar Hamlin. Tagovailoa immediately went into a fencing response with his arms in an unnatural position.

Medical trainers attended to Tagovailoa for several minutes as players kneeled around him. He was ultimately able to walk off the field and into the locker room under his own power but was quickly ruled out for the rest of the game.

After the game, McDaniel said Tagovailoa was in “good spirits,” but he declined to speculate on what was next for the fifth-year veteran.

“Right now … it is more about getting a proper procedural evaluation tomorrow and taking it one day at a time,” McDaniel said. “The furthest thing from my mind is what is the timeline. We just need to evaluate and just worry about my teammate. … We’ll get more information tomorrow and then take it day by day from there.”

Dolphins offensive lineman Austin Jackson was one of the players closest to Tagovailoa after his injury. Jackson said he could see in Tagovailoa’s eyes that he “wasn’t there all the way,” and he almost immediately took a knee.

“Crushed. I hate to see him like that,” said Jackson, who was selected 13 picks after Tagovailoa in the 2020 NFL draft. “Even with his history already with that type of stuff, I hate to see it. I hate that it was him rushing out the pocket. Wish I could get that back for all of us. I could have been better.”

Third-year quarterback Skylar Thompson finished the game in place of Tagovailoa and would presumably start if Tagovailoa can’t play against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 3.

Thompson started three games as a rookie in 2022, including a playoff loss on the road in Buffalo. McDaniel said he and the Dolphins have the “utmost confidence” in Thompson but didn’t commit to him playing against the Seahawks.

“I don’t know what our timeline is. I’m not concerned with that,” McDaniel said. “We played Skylar as a rookie and with the season on the line, and found a way to win an elimination game and go toe-to-toe with this very same organization in a playoff game. I think that he’s a much better player than he was then. Those are things that the team feels — I think guys really believe in Skylar, so I have the utmost confidence in him.”

Tagovailoa was the subject of widespread attention in 2022, when he hit the back of his head on the ground in a game against the Bills. After that fall, he stumbled on his way back to the Dolphins’ huddle and briefly left the game before returning from what was described as a back injury.

The NFL and NFLPA opened a joint investigation into how Tagovailoa was handled, leading to the NFLPA exercising its right to fire the unaffiliated neurological consultant who cleared Tagovailoa to return to the game. The NFL also altered its concussion policy to include an ataxia clause — allowing a spotter to have players removed from a game if they show certain concussion symptoms.

Four days later, Tagovailoa hit the back of his head on the ground in similar fashion during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals and was briefly rendered unconscious. He was taken to a local hospital and diagnosed with a concussion as McDaniel and the Dolphins drew heavy criticism for allowing him to play.

Tagovailoa sat out two games before returning to the field but sustained another concussion during a Dec. 25 game against the Green Bay Packers. This time, the Dolphins shut him down for the rest of the season.

Tagovailoa said he briefly considered retirement after the 2022 season after conversations with his family. During an interview last month with “The Dan Le Batard Show,” he clarified that his mother asked him to consider retiring. He decided against it and spent the offseason bulking up and training jiu-jitsu to learn how to fall without hitting his head on the ground.

When asked, McDaniel suggested the events of the 2022 season would not impact how the team handles Tagovailoa this time.

“I think it’s important to approach each and every situation … every injury with [the mindset of], ‘We’re going to handle this particular situation with this particular player,'” he said. “Every situation is unique. I am not worried about anything that’s out of my hands in terms of, I’m just worried about the human being, and he’ll drive the ship when we get the appropriate information. But it’s day-by-day health … particularly with concussions.”

Counting his final season at Alabama, Tagovailoa has four diagnosed concussions in the past five years. Playing for the Crimson Tide in 2019, he was diagnosed with a concussion and a broken nose on the same play in which he infamously suffered a hip dislocation and fracture of the posterior wall of his hip socket.

McDaniel was asked whether it was safe for Tagovailoa to play football, considering his history of concussions. McDaniel, appearing visibly distressed, repeated he did not want to speculate.

“I don’t approach things that I’m far in theory of expertise. I’m just there to support my teammate,” he said. “For me to go ahead and forecast things that I don’t know in my non-field of expertise, I don’t think that’s appropriate. I think we’ll find out some more information tomorrow in terms of where Tua is at. He’ll be able to spend a good amount of time being evaluated and then we’ll have conversations and progress as appropriate.”

Thoughts from Mike Florio:

We all knew that Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was one play away from his next concussion. Tonight, it happened.

The concerns had become muted in 2023, with Tagovailoa specifically working on avoiding blows to the head and managing to start 17 regular-season games and the team’s lone playoff game.

The latest concussion, at least his third and likely fourth in less than two years, renews the same questions from 2022 about his present, and his future.

It wasn’t the result of Tua falling down and hitting his head. It happened because, in the heat of the moment, he opted not to slide after he’d gained the yardage for a first down. And he wasn’t close to the end zone. The extra territory he was fighting to gain was irrelevant.

True competitors have a hard time turning it off in those moments. But when the situation is as simple as doing everything possible to avoid blows to the head, it’s not the time to lower the shoulder and initiate contact.

So what’s next? Ryan Fitzpatrick suggested on the Amazon Prime postgame show that the Dolphins should immediately place Tua on injured reserve, giving him four weeks to heal. At some point, he’ll be cleared. Presumably, he’ll want to play.

Some (including Tony Gonzalez on the postgame show) have suggested Tua should retire.

Is that realistic? If his history tells us anything, he will undoubtedly want to keep playing.

His new contract carries more than $167 million in injury guarantees. He’ll give up that money if he chooses to walk away. Nearly all of his $42 million signing bonus could also be forfeited, if he affirmatively decides to retire now.

On one hand, this isn’t the time to talk about money. On the other hand, the money is too big to ignore. The notion of treating this latest concussion as a potential trigger for calling it a career would carry massive financial ramifications.

This wasn’t a fluke injury, like the one that happened in Week 17 of the 2022 season to Bills safety Damar Hamlin, who coincidentally tackled Tagovailoa on the play in question. For every football player, a concussion falls fully and completely within the risks of playing football.

We all knew it when he kept playing after the scary Thursday night incident in Cincinnati on a Thursday night in 2022. We all knew it when he kept playing in 2023, after the Christmas Day 2022 concussion (which no one noticed at the time) kept him out for the rest of the year.

We all knew it could happen on any given play. On every given play.

Whether he’s out for four games or one game or no games or the rest of the season, it’s hard to imagine Tua choosing to retire from football. If he didn’t do it when $167 million wasn’t riding on the decision, he’s far less likely to do it now.

Still, he can’t play until he’s cleared. And each successive concussion becomes the concussion that could be the one from which he won’t be medically cleared. Until that final concussion happens — the one that results in doctors telling him he cannot play again — it’s hard to imagine Tua walking away from the game.

That doesn’t mean he won’t make that decision. That said, the monetary aspect can’t be ignored.

A diagnosis off TV from Chris Nowinski:

@ChrisNowinski1

Tua suffered a traumatic brain injury on this play, no question. His right arm shows the “fencing posture” indicating loss of consciousness & is on the severe end on the #concussion spectrum. He is done for the night and must miss the next game.

This from Cody Benjamin of CBSSports.com:

The Miami Dolphins lost quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to a concussion in Thursday night’s blowout loss to the Buffalo Bills, the third confirmed head injury suffered by the signal-caller in the last two years. If the concussion proves as “extreme” as it appeared Thursday, Tagovailoa could be sidelined a minimum of eight to 12 weeks, according to CBS Sports HQ injury expert Marty Jaramillo, though the quarterback’s history of head trauma suggests “retirement has to at least be in play.”

Tagovailoa’s “fencing” position, which he displayed after absorbing contact to the head in the third quarter, was a “textbook sign of a severe head injury,” Jaramillo tells CBS Sports. “He hit his head twice. First on the tackle, second on landing. This young man simply doesn’t have the luxury of having multiple concussions and [then thinking] he will have a long career. … [It’s] not fair to himself and his family.”

Jaramillo estimates that Tagovailoa’s family and personal physicians, along with Dolphins medical personnel, will “be discussing how much time we should give this young man to give him the best chance for long-term health, not just football.” He added that “unfortunately, decisions of this magnitude [tend to] have the short term at the forefront, with less weight given for long-term consequences,” as “everyone is invincible at his age until they are not.”

It was S DEMAR HAMLIN, who knows something about a severe football injury, who hit Tagovailoa.  Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com:

It was a football play that looked like hundreds of others until it didn’t.

Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa scrambled for a first down late in the third quarter on Thursday night and then lowered his head as Bills safety Damar Hamlin moved in to make the tackle.

“I was just trying to make a routine tackle, trying to get them off the field on fourth down,” Hamlin said, via Tim Graham of TheAthletic.com.

It ceased being a normal football play when Tagovailoa displayed the fencing posture associated with concussions and Tagovailoa’s history of brain injuries made that a scary development. Scary developments after seemingly routine plays are something Hamlin knows all too well after going into cardiac arrest after being involved in a tackle during a game against the Bengals during the 2022 season.

Hamlin worked his way back onto the field and became a starter this season, but what happened Thursday night brought some of those memories flooding back.

“It’s trauma. It will always be there,” Hamlin said. “I’m able to not be affected by it because of the work that I’ve done. I went through trauma therapy. I have a psychologist I talk to. It’s allowed me to push my mind forward, push my process forward. I did the hard stuff last year as far as putting the pads on, tackling, getting game-ready to know that I’m now perfectly fine and perfectly able to go back and play.”

Hamlin said he’s praying for Tagovailoa to make a “speedy recovery” and he’ll have plenty of company on that front.

NEW YORK JETS

Pretty cool to learn, in this story about Jets C CONNER McGOVERN by Rich Cimini ofESPN.com, that QB AARON RODGERS, often portrayed as an aloof loner, organized a golf trip for his offensive line.

When New York Jets center Connor McGovern dislocated his left kneecap and damaged his MCL in a game last Oct. 29, he figured his football career was over. He was 30.

“After I got hurt, I called my wife and was like, ‘Well, that’s it. We’re hanging ’em up,'” he recalled Thursday.

Not so fast, his agent told him. McGovern put off retirement, stayed in shape and — wouldn’t you know it? — re-signed with the Jets on Wednesday after a tryout at their facility. He was added to the practice squad, providing interior line depth.

On Thursday, he suited up and put on a football helmet for the first time since the injury.

“If or when this team goes to the playoffs and if I wasn’t helping in some capacity,” McGovern said, “I’d be pretty disappointed that I didn’t seize any opportunity. I had to come have another ride with this group and be a part of something special.”

McGovern, now 31, was the Jets’ starting center from 2020 through his injury last season. He was replaced by 2023 second-round pick Joe Tippmann, who remains the starter. When backup center Wes Schweitzer was put on injured reserve last week because off a hand injury, the Jets reached out to McGovern. And now he’s the elder statesman on their practice squad.

“They’re not exactly throwing me to the wolves,” he said.

Even though he rehabbed his injury and stayed in shape, McGovern didn’t know for sure that he’d continue with his career. He was a free agent, and his phone certainly wasn’t ringing much. When he joined quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the rest of the offensive linemen for a trip to Las Vegas in January — organized by Rodgers — McGovern figured it was “one last little hurrah.” The highlight, he said, was being in Rodgers’ foursome when the quarterback made a hole-in-one at the Shadow Creek Golf Course.

“Best golf shot I’ve ever been around,” he said.

Now McGovern and Rodgers are reunited. McGovern, who began his career with the Denver Broncos, said the Jets were the only team that could’ve lured him out of semi-retirement. On Monday night, a 32-19 loss to the San Francisco 49ers, he rooted for them from his couch in North Dakota.

“My wife was like, ‘You’re not even on the team yet!'” he said. “I was like, ‘Yeah, but those are my boys out there.'”

But EDGE HAASON RIDDICK is not as enamored with the Jets as McGovern.  Cody Bemjamin of CBSSports.com:

Haason Reddick forfeited nearly $800,000 by skipping the New York Jets’ season opener against the San Francisco 49ers. Days later, the star pass rusher remains “dug in” over failed contract talks with the team, according to SNY, with peers apparently convinced the Pro Bowler could sit out the entire 2024 season.

“Nothing has changed,” Connor Hughes reported Thursday. “The two sides are at least talking. There’s been communication between [Reddick’s agent] Tory Dandy and [Jets general manager] Joe Douglas, but both sides remain dug in. The Jets are not willing to negotiate a new contract for Reddick until he shows up. Reddick is not going to show up until he gets a new contract. That’s the stance. … The people that know him well, they say they believe he is the type of person that would be willing to hold out the entire season.”

Some other teams, meanwhile, now believe the Jets will inevitably bow to Reddick’s request to be traded, according to ESPN, given the fact they’re getting no on-field return for the conditional third-round draft pick they surrendered to acquire Reddick back in April. Douglas notably said this summer, as Reddick skipped all of training camp, that the Jets would not meet the veteran’s demand to be shipped elsewhere.

The sides have been feuding for months, with Reddick reportedly convinced the Jets had promised to issue him a new contract upon his arrival, and Douglas countering that notion with his public remarks. Originally traded to New York from the Philadelphia Eagles after a reported breakdown in contract talks with his former team, Reddick also absorbed more than $5 million in NFL-mandated fines due to his camp holdout.