MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Tua Tagovailoa could only watch from the sideline as the Miami Dolphins struggled to get anything going on offense the past four games.
The quarterback said it has been frustrating to see his team score just 40 points while he was on injured reserve with a concussion, but he also isn't expecting to come in and be a hero even after Miami fell to 2-4 with Sunday's loss to the Indianapolis Colts.
“I don’t think for myself I put any pressure on myself coming back and having to save the team," Tagovailoa said Monday. "I think what we have to do is we’ve got to look at this past game, all 11 guys on the field, were we given an opportunity with the plays that were called to score on every drive? And if we can say yes, then we can look at ourselves and see what we can do to get better moving forward.”
Tagovailoa will return to practice Wednesday and could start Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals if this week goes well, coach Mike McDaniel said. Both he and Tagovailoa said medical experts deemed it safe for the quarterback to play again after being diagnosed with the third concussion of his NFL career.
He will need to practice before he can be cleared from the concussion protocol, but his return could spark the Dolphins' offense, which is averaging a league-worst 12 points per game and has continually stalled because of penalties.
The Dolphins initially turned to Skylar Thompson to replace Tagovailoa, who was hurt in Week 2. Thompson struggled in his only start at Seattle the next week and hurt his ribs in that game. Tyler Huntley has started the past three games for Miami but hurt his throwing shoulder in the third quarter Sunday.
Huntley lost his debut in Week 4 against the Titans but did enough to help Miami beat New England the next week. He has completed 59.1% of his passes for 377 yards with one touchdown passing and one rushing.
Tim Boyle, who replaced Huntley on Sunday, has completed 15 of 26 passes in two appearances this season.
“There were some things that I was happy with in terms of giving other players a chance to do their jobs and have good football,” McDaniel said, “but overall I would say there was a solid amount of time where the overall (quarterback) play wasn’t good enough.”
McDaniel added that Miami's problems on offense extend further than the quarterback position, and they won't be fixed simply by Tagovailoa's return.
“It's important to state what I just finished talking to the team about,” McDaniel said, “is that he’s not the savior either.”
Tagovailoa has been involved on the sidelines and helping Miami's backup quarterbacks along the way.
“Listen, I think it’s really tough to ask any of our quarterbacks to come in to do the footwork that we’ve been doing for the past two years,” Tagovailoa said, "to see fast guys running and seeing the space that’s there and asking them to kind of process all of that. We looked at film, we were able to see what we missed and what we could’ve got better with, but it’s a team sport. It shouldn’t take one position for this whole thing to crumble. Everybody needs to be on their Ps and Qs as well.”
The Dolphins leaned on the run game for the second straight outing, taking advantage of the Colts' poor run defense for 188 yards rushing and 4.7 yards per carry. De'Von Achane led the team with 77 yards on 15 carries.
McDaniel has said for weeks that he needs to find ways to get the ball to receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. That didn't happen on Sunday. Both were targeted just twice and had one catch apiece for a combined 19 yards receiving — their poorest output as teammates.
TE Jonnu Smith caught all seven of his targets for a season-high 96 yards, including a 10-yard touchdown.
RB Raheem Mostert and FB Alec Ingold. Both had fumbles that led to points for the Colts. Mostert was stripped in the third, leading to a game-tying touchdown. Ingold lost the ball on the Indianapolis 13 to end a promising drive later in the quarter.
CB Cam Smith (hamstring) could return this week after being activated from injured reserve on Monday, and WR Braxton Berrios was placed on IR after injuring his knee on Sunday. McDaniel said he would likely have more information about Huntley's shoulder injury on Tuesday.
70 — The Dolphins' total points this season. Miami hasn't scored 70 or fewer points through its first six games since scoring 63 during an 0-6 start in 2019.
The Dolphins host Arizona (2-4) on Sunday.
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