Everything Tua Tagovailoa said after announcing his Dolphins return

Tua Tagovailoa is set to make his Miami Dolphins return in Week 8 against the Arizona Cardinals.

The Dolphins have new hope to save their season after falling to 2-4 with defeat to the Indianapolis Colts. With huge games coming up, there is little margin for error to stay in the playoff hunt. Getting Tua back is key.

Miami may need at least seven wins to have any shot at making the playoffs, which starts with games against the Cardinals and Buffalo Bills.

Tagovailoa has missed the past four games since suffering a concussion in the Dolphins' loss to the Bills on Thursday Night Football in Week 2. Since then, Miami has struggled with Tyler Huntley, Tim Boyle, and Skylar Thompson at quarterback. The team's lack of planning at the backup quarterback spot has hurt them in Tagovailoa's absence.

On Monday, Tagovailoa spoke to Dolphins reporters about his concussion, his return to action, and any concerns about his long-term future with the team. Tua provided honest answers in a fascinating presser.

Here's what he said.

Everything Tua Tagovailoa said after Dolphins announce his return from injured reserve

How long has he been symptom free?

"I would say, I've been symptom free from the next day after the [Buffalo game in Week 2]."

On people saying he should retire:

"I wasn't paying attention to any of it. None of it."

On whether he will wear a guardian cap:

"Nope. Personal choice."

On whether he will change his style of play:

"I've just got to be smart. That's it. Got to be smart. My entire time playing football, I've been a competitor. And that was sort of my edge, when I would run, from high school, even in college I'd do the same thing. But, it's a professional setting, a professional level, the best of the best. You just can't be doing that. I've got stay more available for the team, for the organization, for our guys."

On the Dolphins putting him on injured reserve:

"What I do know is I think the team did what was best in the interest of me, knowing that I'm a competitor. Given what the doctors have told me, that having a substantial amount of time to rest and recover would've been good for me, I think they did what was best in terms of protecting myself from myself."

On people who are worried about Tua getting hurt again:

"I appreciate your concern, I really do. I love this game, and I love it to the death of me. That's it."

On the risk of returning:

"How much risk do we take when we get up in the morning to drive to work? You can get into a car crash. Anything takes risk. To answer that question, every time we all suit up, we're all taking a risk that we could potentially get hurt, whether it's a concussion, a broken bone, anything. You get up off the bed the wrong way, you potentially could risk spraining your ankle. There's risk in any and everything."

It was a fascinating press conference. Tua made it clear he has no concerns about his long-term status and that he is a competitor. This is what he loves to do. Some of his quotes were a little hard to listen to, but he did speak about the importance of protecting himself and potentially limiting how often he runs.

From a football perspective, the Dolphins benefit from his return. It's up to the medical staff and Tagovailoa to determine whether he should play.

Tua said he is excited to return and help the team. It starts on Sunday with a huge matchup against the Cardinals.