Miami signs another quarterback while mulling injured reserve for Tua Tagovailoa

The Miami Dolphins haven’t decided if a concussion sustained by quarterback Tua Tagovailoa in Thursday night’s 31-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills will send the former Alabama All-American to injured reserve. But the NFL team did add a quarterback to its roster on Monday.

The Dolphins signed Snoop Huntley from the Baltimore Ravens’ practice squad. Huntley has been with the Ravens since 2020, and he started nine games over the previous three seasons when Lamar Jackson was injured.

Tagovailoa’s injury left Miami with his backup, Skylar Thompson, and the practice squad’s Tim Boyle as its available quarterbacks.

“This is not in any direct reflection to Skylar as Tua’s backup,” Miami coach Mike McDaniel said about signing Huntley. “This is more for the depth. I do think that it helps the dynamics of the room to give another guy with starting history to this team and gives another added addition of a guy that’s a signal-caller that a team can get behind. I was happy adding – what we were able to do in the quarterback room – in adding Boyle, but I think this is more directly to back up Skylar and then you always let competition play out when it’s out on the field, but this was a depth move, for sure.”

Whether the Dolphins will need more depth remains to be seen because Tagovailoa has no timetable for return. Miami’s next game is on the road against the Seattle Seahawks at 3:05 p.m. CDT Sunday.

“Not enough information quite yet,” McDaniel said when asked if Tagovailoa would be placed on injured reserve. “That’s going to be driven by medical experts and then when we get the appropriate information and discuss with Tua, then (Dolphins general manager) Chris (Grier) and I can discuss that. Not quite ready to make a distinction on that, so that could or couldn’t. We’ll see in the next coming days.”

A player on injured reserve must miss at least four games before he can play again.

Regardless of his IR status, Tagovailoa will not be able to play until he clears the NFL’s concussion protocol, and because of his concussion history, there is heightened concern about Tagovailoa’s future in the game.

McDaniel said Tagovailoa was in the Dolphins’ training facility on Monday.

“He was downstairs today smiling with his teammates,”
McDaniel said. “He’s working with the trainers and medical staff diligently, and as far as I’m concerned, you’re in the protocol and I think he’s doing well today and we take it day-by-day.

“He was feeling good, but what does that mean in terms of a medical diagnosis? I don’t base my judgments on my interactions with him necessarily as much as it is hearing the end result of the medical examination and where he’s at.

“It was good to see him, and I know his teammates were pumped to see him.”

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Two concussions caused Tagovailoa to miss five games during the 2022 season. But the QB came back to start 17 regular-season games and one playoff contest for the Dolphins while leading NFL in passing yards in 2023.