How worried are NFL teams about Tua Tagovailoa’s health? The answer varies, but the signals are pretty significant.
According to Bob McGinn of The Athletic, three NFL teams have taken Tagovailoa off their draft boards entirely due to concern about his durability. There is a fear that Tagovailoa could develop avascular necrosis, the loss of bone tissue, due to the hip injury he suffered last November, which would be a major long-term problem for his NFL career.
McGinn surveyed 18 NFL personnel people and askedthem to rate their concerns about Tagovailoa’s durability on a scale of 1 to 10, and the average came out to be 7.6.
“I’m playing the odds,” an AFC personnel man said. “I don’t want to put my whole franchise on a left-handed, beat-up, 6-foot quarterback. No thank you.”
With that level of concern, it’s no wonder that there seems to be a growing consensus that Tagovailoa might not be the second quarterback taken after all. There’s no doubt about his skill, but the injuries and durability — combined with the inability for teams to get a good look at him right now — are an enormous issue that can’t be fixed or calmed before the draft.
