Tua Tagovailoa Placed on Injured Reserve, Will Miss at Least Three Games

The Dolphins will reportedly place their second-year quarterback on the injured reserve with a rib injury, ruling him out until Week 6 at the earliest.

Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is set for a stint on the injured reserve as he recovers from a rib injury, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. 

The decision to put the former Alabama star on the IR means that Tagovailoa will miss at least the next three games, although head coach Brian Flores had already ruled out the quarterback for Sunday's trip to Las Vegas. 

Tagovailoa won't be eligible to return until Week 6 against the Jaguars on Oct. 17 as he will also miss the Dolphins' games against the Colts and Buccaneers. 

The second-year passer fractured his ribs after taking a big hit in the first quarter of the Dolphins' 35–0 loss to the Bills last weekend. Jacoby Brissett took over for Tagovailoa, completing 24 of 40 passes for 169 yards with an interception.

Tua Tagovailoa is hurt. Here is a video of the injury (via @BradleyGelber)

Hoping Tua is okay 🙏 pic.twitter.com/2BDPnQBfLQ

— PFF Fantasy & Betting (@PFF_Fantasy) September 19, 2021

Tagovailoa threw for 202 passing yards with a touchdown and an interception in the Dolphins' 17–16 win in Week 1 against the Patriots. 

The Dolphins will reportedly bring in Reid Sinnett from the practice squad to serve as Brissett's backup. Flores had previously said Tagovailoa was "day-to-day." 

"I think with Tua, it’s day-to-day and we want to see how he’s doing every day," Flores said during his Friday press conference. "Is he making improvement? And that kind of gives us a lot of the information we need to make those types of decisions."