Tua Tagovailoa Reached Out to Joe Burrow After Knee Injury
CINCINNATI — Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is having reconstructive surgery on his left knee this week in Los Angeles after tearing his ACL and MCL in Week 11 against Washington.
The 23-year-old also suffered damage to his PCL and meniscus league sources told AllBengals.com.
The Bengals are looking to snap a three-game losing streak on Sunday in Miami.
Dolphins rookie Tua Tagovailoa is no stranger to injuries. He suffered a season-ending hip injury last season at Alabama.
Tagovailoa talked to Burrow after he saw the gruesome knee injury he suffered against Washington.
"When I heard about Joe’s injury, I reached out to him. Injuries like that, they are never fun," Tagovailoa said on Wednesday. "You never wish that on anybody. I got to reach out to him and I know he would love to be able to go out there and compete against us. That’s tough. I just sent him my prayers and whatnot. I wished him the best as well.”
Sunday was supposed to be Tua vs. Burrow round two. Instead, it could be Brandon Allen against Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Tagovailoa jammed his thumb last week in practice and may not start for the second straight game. He was limited in practice on Wednesday.
“Ryan (Fitzpatrick) is a very good leader, talented player, smart, gritty, tough. He really embodies a lot of the characteristics we’re looking for in a Dolphin," head coach Brian Flores said on Wednesday. "He can handle adversity, [is] mentally tough. It’s been great working with him I would say these last two years. He’s been a great mentor to Tua and a lot of other young players."
Tagovailoa and Burrow will be forever linked. Cincinnati selected Burrow with the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Miami took Tagovailoa four picks later.
Burrow got the best of Tagovailoa last season in Tuscaloosa, leading LSU past Alabama 46-41.
Unfortunately, they won't be on the field competing against one another on Sunday.
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