Harbaugh’s comments are alarming and reassuring at the same time. Harbaugh said what most of us thought about Tua’s re-entry into the game on Sunday. How was Tua Tagovailoa allowed to renter the game on Sunday and allowed to play Thursday night?
The video of a conversation between Peter King and Mike Florio in the story link is very illuminating. The issue of who should ultimately make the decision about a player’s safety regarding concussive issues is at the forefront of the debate. As Peter King states, there is a red badge of courage for players to keep playing and lie about their concussions.
On a high school level, there are protocols in place, but anyone who has attended high school games over the years will attest, there are head injuries in football games. To a fan in the stands, it is very difficult to accurately ascertain what actually happens to a player. Millions saw Tua Tagovailoa suffer some head trauma on Thursday night’s NFL game, yet he was cleared later that night in a Cincinnati hospital and flew back with his team.
Head concussions is a lingering issue that will not go away in football on any level. As reluctant as players, coaches, and fans are to deal with concussions, it is an issue that must be fully evaluated again with standard medical protocols that protects players at every level of competition.
Peter King sounds an alarm by stating that if more guardrails are not in place to protect players at every level, you are going to see colleges and schools starting to drop football. What has happened to Tua Tagovailoa should create more changes in the protocols to protect players from head trauma.
BD Newsletter 