Getty Image / Megan Briggs
Early on in the NFL season, it looked like Tua Tagovailoa was on the way to a breakout year.
He had shredded the Baltimore Ravens in a huge comeback win for the Miami Dolphins and was being brought up in MVP discussion.
Then the story of his season started to change.
It began with a game against the Bills where Tua appeared to be stumbling after suffering a head injury. Unfortunately, it wasn’t addressed . He ended up playing 4 days later and suffering an even worse head injury.
He was able to get his season back on track after returning, putting together 3 consecutive games where he threw for 3 touchdowns and averaged over 300 yards per game shortly after his recovery.
Unfortunately, he would end up suffering another concussion. This time it was after his head hit the turf when he was tackles by a member of the Packers. Once again, it wasn’t addressed until after the game.
This one caused him to miss the last 2 weeks of the regular season and put him in the concussion protocol for over a month.
Now he has revealed that he is taking an interesting approach to try and avoid further concussion issues next season.
Tua revealed on the Up and Adams Show that he is going to be practicing judo this offseason.
With @Tua now being a dad, it makes him want do things outside of the NFL to help himself… he will be doing judo every Friday to understand his body and how to fall 🥋
📺: @FanDuelTV | @heykayadams | @nateburleson pic.twitter.com/L6tGenLfWw
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) February 10, 2023
We got like a plan set up. I’ll be doing judo on Fridays just so that I can kind of figure out; you know, understanding my body and how to fall. I’m not trying to be a dangerous person. I’m just trying to help myself.
it’s a creative way to try and protect Tua’s head. Judo emphasizes body positioning, control, and momentum in a way that could help him hit the ground in a safer way when he is tackled.
Hopefully it helps as it would be really unfortunate to see Tua Tagovailoa’s career derailed by concussions just when he seemingly started to hit his stride in the league.