HENDERSON, Nev. — Las Vegas Raiders coach Antonio Pierce was watching Thursday’s game between the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills when quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffered another concussion. It marked Tagovailoa’s third diagnosed concussion in the last two years.
When asked how he would handle Tagovailoa’s return if he coached the Dolphins, Pierce said he’d tell the quarterback to retire.
“I’ll be honest. I would tell him to retire,” Pierce said Friday. “It’s not worth it. It’s not worth it.”
Tagovailoa suffered his third diagnosed concussion by leading with his head and lunging forward into Bills safety Damar Hamlin’s chest. Tagovailoa remained on the field for several minutes before being helped off the field and ruled out of the game.
Backup quarterback Skyler Thompson finished the game for Miami, throwing for 80 yards.
Pierce played in the NFL as a linebacker from 2001 to 2009 before transitioning to coaching in 2014. He said he’s never seen a situation like Tagovailoa’s in all of his years around football.
“I haven’t witnessed anything like I’ve seen that’s happened to him three times,” Pierce said. “It’s scary. You could see right away the players’ faces on the field. You could see the sense of urgency from everybody to get Tua help.”
Pierce’s comments come on the heels of other former players calling for Tagovailoa to step away from the game for good. Antonio Brown, Dez Bryant, Shannon Sharpe, Adrian Amos and Mitchell Schwartz chimed in to urge Tagovailoa to put his long-term health first.
It’s currently unknown when — or if — Tagovailoa will be medically cleared to return to action. If he’s cleared, it would be up to him to decide to walk away from the sport. Pierce said he would advise Tagovailoa to preserve his long-term health.
“He’s going to live longer than he’s going to play football,” Pierce said. “Take care of your family.”
(Photo: Harry How / Getty Images)
