Tua Tagovailoa Talks About his Concussion and More: The SI Super Bowl Interview

The former Alabama quarterback visited Radio Row and talked about Mike McDaniel, NFL stadiums and Tyreek Hill.

Christopher Walsh | Feb 10, 2023

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Alabama Crimson Tide

Tua Tagovailoa is going to spend part of his offseason learned on how to fall better.

Seriously.

The former Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback talked about his plan to do so, one of the concussions he experienced, NFL stadiums and Tyreek Hill on Friday.

But the subject that everyone wanted to know about at the Super Bowl was Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel and whether he was vaping on the sideline like the internet speculated this season.

Tagovailoa said no, and dubbed the coach the "ultimate dude."

Specifically, McDaniel found himself at the center of a viral moment during his team’s playoff loss to the Bills when television cameras caught him lifting up his hands to his face in a move that many thought was to conceal the fact that he was vaping.

Speaking with Sports Illustrated’s Lacey Jane Brown on Radio Row ahead of Super Bowl LVII, Tagovailoa admitted that he wasn’t sure if McDaniel used a vape, the Dolphins quarterback set the record straight about what happened on the sideline that day.

“It didn’t happen, no. I think it was cold,” Tagovailoa said.

Tagovailoa was correct that it was a chilly day in Buffalo when his Miami team was eliminated from the playoffs in a 34–31 loss to the Bills.

The third-year quarterback wasn’t able to be out on the field with his team as he was recovering from the second confirmed concussion that he suffered during the 2022 season.

Though his third year in the NFL was marred by concussions, Tagovailoa posted career-highs in passing yards (3,548) and touchdowns (25) in his first season under McDaniel’s tutelage. The two have developed a strong relationship that the Dolphins are determined to keep in place heading into next year.

During his interview with SI, Tagovailoa was also asked about the funniest thing McDaniel had ever told him or done.

“Yeah there’s a lot of things. And a lot of things I shouldn’t share. He would deny it anyway,” Tagovailoa answered. “I don’t know, there’s not one particular things that I can share that is uh, appropriate to share that is hilarious.

“But he is like, if there was in the dictionary ‘Dude’ capitalized, his picture would be right next to it. He’s a dude.”

Bama in the NFL Database

Published Feb 10, 2023

CHRISTOPHER WALSH

Christopher Walsh is the founder and publisher of BamaCentral, which first published in 2018. He's covered the Crimson Tide since 2004, and is the author of 26 books including Decade of Dominance, 100 Things Crimson Tide Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die, Nick Saban vs. College Football, and Bama Dynasty: The Crimson Tide's Road to College Football Immortality. He's an eight-time honoree of Football Writers Association of America awards and three-time winner of the Herby Kirby Memorial Award, the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s highest writing honor for story of the year. In 2022, he was named one of the 50 Legends of the ASWA. Previous beats include the Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, along with Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. Originally from Minnesota and a graduate of the University of New Hampshire, he currently resides in Tuscaloosa.

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Bama in the NFL Database