Raiders' Antonio Pierce has drastically different Tua Tagovailoa retirement take from Dolphins' Mike McDaniel

Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel addressed quarterback Tua Tagovailoa's "Thursday Night Football" concussion against the Buffalo Bills with reporters on Friday morning.

McDaniel defiantly dismissed chatter of Tagovailoa's possible retirement due to suffering three concussions in recent years, saying that now wasn't the time to be talking about those types of things. McDaniel said the signal-caller's "career is his" and he wishes "people would for a second hear that bringing up his future is not in the best interest of him," per Joe Schad of The Palm Beach Post .

Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce joined a slew of analysts and former players to take a different approach, pleading with Tagovailoa on Friday to strongly consider retiring for his safety. Pierce, notably, is a former NFL linebacker, playing nine seasons from 2001-2009.

"I'll be honest, I'd tell him to retire," Pierce said. "It’s not worth it. It’s not worth it. Played the game, I haven’t witnessed anything like I’ve seen that’s happened to him three times. Scary. You can see right away, the players’ faces on the field. You can see the sense of urgency from everybody to get Tua help. I just think that at some point, he’s going to live longer than he’s going to play football. Take care of your family."

Tagovailoa suffered two documented concussions in 2022 and, despite being limited to 13 games (two of which were cut short) that season, finished ninth in the MVP voting. He was even better in 2023, playing in all 17 games, making his first Pro Bowl and leading Miami to the playoffs for the second year in a row.

On Thursday, however, following a routine tackle by Bills safety Damar Hamlin in the third quarter, the 26-year-old Tagovailoa crumpled to the ground and "immediately went into a fencing response with his arms in an unnatural position," per ESPN's Marcel Louis-Jacques .

McDaniel said on Friday that he doesn't "see how (Tagovailoa) would play" in Week 3, but "who am I to know or judge?" Either way, the Dolphins are planning to roll with backup quarterback Skylar Thompson under center.

Thompson has spent his entire career in South Beach since being drafted by Miami in the seventh round in 2022. He replaced Tagovailoa following the concussion and finished 8-of-14 for 80 passing yards with no touchdowns or interceptions in the 31-10 loss.