Tua Tagovailoa doesn't want to be known as "the poster boy for concussions"

After his third diagnosed concussion in five seasons, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa heard the calls for him to retire. Tagovailoa said he never considered it, because no doctor recommended it.

“If they would have told me that I couldn’t play I would have definitely taken that into consideration but there were no talks like that," Tagovailoa told Jeff Darlington of ESPN, via Joe Schad of the Palm Beach Post. “It never stuck in my mind that I was ever thinking of retiring.”

After a concussion in Week 2, Tagovailoa missed four games — and five weeks — before returning to the field. Doctors diagnosed him with two concussions in 2022 and a third hit to the head led the NFL to alter its concussion protocol after he was allowed to stay in the game.

"What I don’t want to be known for is the poster boy for concussions. That's for sure,” Tagovailoa told Darlington.

Tagovailoa said his personal goal for the rest of the season is to "stay healthy."

The Dolphins (2-6) are trying to break a three-game losing streak. Tagovailoa returned last week and threw for 231 yards and two touchdowns last week, but the Dolphins fell to the Bills.