Dolphins' Mike McDaniel reiterates Tua Tagovailoa had no prior head injury, calls incidents ‘unrelated issues’

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The Miami Dolphins have received lots of backlash since Tua Tagovailoa suffered head and neck injuries Thursday. Many observers suggest Thursday's injuries were related to Sunday's hit that led to the QB wobbling to the turf.

Head coach Mike McDaniel defended his handling of the injuries after the game.

On Friday, he was confident that Sunday's and Thursday's incidents were "unrelated events" in an emotional meeting with the media.

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Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is examined during the first half of the team's game against the Cincinnati Bengals Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022, in Cincinnati.  (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

"I get the optics. I get exactly what it looks like …," McDaniel told reporters Friday, via the Miami Herald. "[But] I can exude with 100 percent conviction that every person in this building had 100 percent the correct process."

McDaniel again said Tagovailoa did not suffer a head injury Sunday.

"The whole process of what happens in the Bills game is he was evaluated for the head injury immediately," McDaniel said. "That’s what we brought him inside for and cleared by several layers of medical professionals. I don’t pretend to be one. The collection of them cleared him of any head injury whatsoever. He had a back and ankle issue. In terms of deciding whether or not to play a guy on a Thursday night game, I’m concerned about his lower back and ankle and putting it in harm’s way. I have 100% conviction in our process …

Medical staffers tend to quarterback Tua Tagovailoa of the Miami Dolphins after an injury during the second quarter of a game against the Cincinnati Bengals at