MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — The hit that sent Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa out of the Thursday night game on a stretcher raised more questions about another one against the Buffalo Bills last Sunday.
He struggled to walk, but cleared concussion protocol. The Dolphins said it was back and ankle injuries.
However, many fans and even doctors aren't convinced.
"Is there any chance that it really could've been back and spinal injuries due to the hit he took," 2 On Your Side asked Dr. John Leddy, a world renowned concussions doctor at UB.
"I think that's highly unlikely. I've never seen that and I've talked to other doctors who are on sidelines as well and they've never seen that from an upper back spasm," Leddy said.
Though he didn't examine the 24-year-old quarterback himself, Leddy says Tagovailoa displayed all the signs.
"The way he behaved at the end of the first half of the Bills game was a classic sign of a concussion," Leddy said. "Most people I know would've taken him out of that game to protect his brain."
Tagovailoa went on to play against the Cincinnati Bengals, hitting his head on the turf again.
His hands froze, known as the fencing phenomenon, meaning his brain and spinal cord were stunned and tried to protect themselves.
The Dolphins head coach said Tagovailoa is in concussion protocol and has back and neck injuries.
Now the NFL Players Association is conducting a review into whether the Dolphins failed to follow concussion protocol last Sunday.
"I think the NFL has taken these injuries much more seriously in the last five, ten years. They have protocols in place, they have observers in place. What I don't understand is why in this instance, they didn't seem to work," Leddy said. "I guess the question here is whether they were followed appropriately."