MIAMI GARDENS — It was, understandably, a very quiet and downtrodden Miami Dolphins locker room after a loss to the Buffalo Bills in which quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was concussed.
"Heartbroken," Dolphins offensive tackle Austin Jackson said. "Hate that. I hate to see him in that position. He's a great man, great quarterback, great leader on this team. He's a little more comfortable doing different things and I just hate to see that. I hate to see it. The whole team did."
"It's really scary," Dolphins edge rusher Jaelan Phillips said. "I hope he's doing alright."
Phillips once retired from college football due to concussions.
"Yeah, I mean, that's not really my place to speak on Tua and his experience," Phillips said.
"Obviously you never want to see something like that, especially with him, who's dealt with this before," Dolphins tight end Durham Smythe said. "I don't know much about it at this point. Obviously, I saw what everyone else saw, and I haven't heard from him since. So, I guess I'll just be hoping for the best for the next couple of hours, for tomorrow, and then we'll go from there."
'Unfortunate.' Dolphins' Jonnu Smith on Tua Tagovailoa concussion
"Unfortunate to see, unfortunate to watch," Dolphins tight end Jonnu Smith said. "That's my brother, man.. We're gonna' make sure he's good. And I know Tua's a fighter, man, so whatever it is that he's dealing with, I'm sure he'll bounce back from it."
Smith said Tua was positive in the locker room after the game.
"Yeah, man, the guy, man, is just full of energy, man, and he's always optimistic and positive, and that's what you want in your leader, man," Smith said. "So it was good to see him, a smile on his face, and make him come in here and checking on guys. You know what I mean? That's the guy he is, man."
'It's a violent game.' Dolphins' David Long after Tua Tagovailoa injury
“It’s a violent game we play and any play could be your last,” linebacker David Long said. “We’ve seen that before but we know what we got into this game for. We know the highs and lows that come out of it and if you’re playing scared or trying to avoid that, it messes up your game. You have to go out there and be fearless and take whatever comes with it.”
Smythe said he understands why Tua went for extra yardage and put his head down, as opposed to sliding near Buffalo's end zone.
"Obviously, as a quarterback, you have to put it through your head, do you want to strain for the first down or do you want to slide?" Smythe said. "He's a competitor. So, obviously, you want to see the first down. I think it is instinct in that regard."
As much as players want Tua at quarterback, they understand the importance of the quarterback's long-term health.
"There's a fine line in this game between doing everything you can to win and being okay as a person off the field," Smythe said. "I've known (Tua) for so long, obviously I care about him in that regard. Obviously I want him back on the field because that's when we're at our best and he loves playing this game. But you care about the person as well. You care about the person as well."
"I love Tua," Phillips said. “We all love Tua. I hope you guys have seen how amazing of a guy he is too. So, I don't think anybody's... Yeah, Tua's a great guy."
Instant Takeaways: Dolphins lose to Bills; Tua Tagovailoa suffers concussion
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Joe Schad is a journalist covering the Miami Dolphins and the NFL at The Palm Beach Post . You can reach him at jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on Instagram and on X @schadjoe . Sign up for Joe's free weekly Dolphins Pulse Newsletter . Help support our work by subscribing today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Tua Tagovailoa concussion stuns Miami Dolphins teammates: 'Really scary'
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