Tua Tagovailoa has one big red flag when it comes to his future

If you are one of those who love Tua Tagovailoa then you are in the majority and chances are you think he is flawless. He is not.

Tua Tagovailoa is going to go in the first round but where isn’t exactly known because we have all seen this play out before. Brady Quinn was supposed to be a top ten draft pick, Aaron Rodgers was a top ten draft pick, Daniel Jones wasn’t supposed to go until the late first round. In other words, more often than not, everyone is wrong.

There are a lot of positives to say about Tua Tagovailoa. He has NFL quality arm strength. He has the leadership qualities that you want in a quarterback. He has the ability to make every NFL throw and with accuracy. He also has one problem that the lovers won’t talk about. A problem that is summarily waved off with a hand as they turn and walk away.

Tua Tagovailoa has durability issues. It’s a massive red flag because no matter how much of a leader he is, no matter how great his accuracy is, and no matter how strong his arm is, it all means nothing if he isn’t on the field. Simply put, he can’t do squat in rehab.

Now there are a lot of people who look beyond the durability issues. They will tell you that Drew Brees had durability issues and Nick Saban screwed that up. They will point to Tua’s size, hovering around six feet, as similar stature to Brees who was passed over by Dave Wannstedt.

Tagovailoa missed his first start at Alabama following an ankle injury and later he would miss most of the 2019 season with a hip injury. He has had injuries before.

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In 2018, Tagovailoa kicked off his year with a broken finger in March during spring training, he suffered a knee injury in October. It was minor and he still played but he would miss time a month later when he suffered a quad injury. He returned a week later but in December he suffered his ankle injury. He needed a medical procedure but would return for the playoffs.

In 2019, Tagovailoa suffered his 2nd ankle injury and had another procedure done, then came the hip injury.

The Miami Dolphins may very well draft Tagovailoa in late April and he may end up being the type of starting quarterback that every NFL team dreams of, a 14-year starting iron man but he could also end up being the biggest hyped football player of the decade that spends more time in an ice bath than on the football field.

His past injuries mean nothing as it relates to his future but the Dolphins need to be cognizant of the past and then weight their decision against it. The arguments that a QB who has never been injured is still a risk once they are injured is fair but a player who has spent a lot of time banged up over the last three years should at least be reason enough to pause and evaluate the reasons why.