Mike McDaniel provides postgame injury update on Tua Tagovailoa

Some positive updates came in on Tua Tagovailoa after he left the Miami Dolphins’ game against the Cincinnati Bengals with a scary injury. Afterward, Mike McDaniel provided an official update on his starting quarterback.

Tagovailoa left the game in the second quarter on a stretcher with head and neck injuries and was taken to University of Cincinnati hospital — a Level 1 trauma center. He was conscious and had full movement of his extremities, the Dolphins announced, and Amazon sideline reporter Kaylee Hartung reported Tagovailoa’s parents were also en route to meet him there. She later added Tagovailoa was expected to be discharged from the hospital Thursday night to head back to Miami with the team.

McDaniel also spoke with Tagovailoa as he was leaving the field and had a conversation with him about the play. The former Alabama star asked his coach what happened on the play, McDaniel said, and he confirmed he’s preparing to leave the hospital.

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“It was a scary moment,” McDaniel said in his postgame press conference. “He was evaluated for a concussion and he’s in the concussion protocol. He was at the hospital, I believe he’s about to get discharged. That was an emotional moment that is not part of the deal that anyone signs up for even though you know it’s a possibility in football to have something that you have to get taken off on a stretcher.

“All of his teammates, myself, we were all very concerned. The best news that we can get is everything is checked out, that he didn’t have anything more serious than a concussion. He’ll be flying back with us here on the plane.”

McDaniel also addressed the personal side of the situation, opening up about his mentality after the scary play.

“For me, I think a lot of people struggled,” McDaniel said. “I know me, personally, if I didn’t have a job to do for the organization and the rest of the players and I didn’t have that obligation in my mind, I would’ve tapped. It’s not something that is comfortable for anybody and it was not a situation that you want for any of your players or your team in general. Some scary stuff. I’m just glad that it worked out.”

At the time of his injury, Tagovailoa completed 8 of 14 passes for 110 yards and threw one interception in the first quarter and a half of action. Teddy Bridgewater then took over for Tagovailoa at quarterback and led the Dolphins on a scoring drive heading into halftime.