Tua Tagovailoa addresses retirement concerns in Monday Press Conference

Dating back to September 29th, 2022, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has been a victim of one of the NFL's biggest controversies; concussions. This week Tagovailoa is set to make his return from his third concussion in three seasons.

For the past decade, the NFL has been playing cat-and-mouse with fans and players about the safety of their players. In 2009, the NFLPA started to turn a new leaf and actually looked out for the safety of its players on the field. They began advocating for better health and safety standards for all players.

In 2011, the NFL formed the Game Day Concussion Diagnosis and Management Protocol. This program was developed to further bring research into injuries like concussions.

In 2013, the NFL would announce new safety measures like adding penalties (targeting and contacting a defenseless player above the shoulders) and placing an independent neurologist on the sideline for every game.

Laster in the 2014-15 season, the NFL would implement concussion experts onto the sideline to pair with independent neurologists.

Since then, the NFL has become increasingly more aware of their problems, including adding the Guardian Caps for optional use for players this season. Well, guardian caps aren't exactly the biggest hit for players this season. Only six players have worn the guardian caps in regular season play. Some include former University of Michigan star Jabrill Peppers, Cleveland Browns linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, and Pittsburgh Steelers guard James Daniels. It's not that the Guardian Caps aren't helping players on the field stay safe, they just don't want to. One of those players includes Tagovailoa.

In his press conference on Monday, Tagovailoa addressed the media regarding his projected return to the field this weekend. Reporters gave Tagovailoa their concerns about his injuries in which Tagovailoa brushed off. Soon, reporters brought up the topic of Guardian Caps for conversation with Tagovailoa, which ultimately ended in a calm "personal choice" of not wearing it for extra protection.

Tagovailoa was appreciative of the concerns of the reporters, but wants to return to the game he loves and finish out his career.