HOUSTON — Former Houston Texans defensive star J.J. Watt is defending Tua Tagovailoa after some have criticized the Miami Dolphins quarterback who suffered a concussion for the third time in his NFL career.
Tagovailoa left Thursday night’s game against the Buffalo Bills after running into defensive back Damar Hamlin and hitting the back of his head against the turf.
The Dolphins quarterback remained down for about two minutes before getting to his feet and walking to the sideline in the third quarter.
Immediately, people took to social media after seeing the results of the play. Some showed concern while others were critical of Tagovailoa for diving headfirst to get the first down as opposed to sliding which might have protected him from getting hit.
“Seen a lot of conversations last night and this morning about Tua needs a slide. He's got to get down. He knows he can't take hits like that,” Watt, who currently serves as an analyst for the NFL on CBS, said in a video posted to social media. “I feel like a lot of those same people are the ones who would be crushing him he slides and comes up short on fourth down in the red zone when his team is trying to muster any semblance of a comeback that they can.”
Watt says there is a double standard when it comes to the criticism of Tagovailoa’s decision-making.
“Everybody wants to see modern-day gladiators, but they don't want the guilt that comes along with it. So they want a guy to lower his shoulder. They want a guy to power through. They want a guy to get the first down, but then when he does that and gets hurt, they all want to take the opposite side and say, no, no, he should absolutely slide,” Watt said.
The former Texans star explained it is easy for spectators to criticize and play “arm-chair quarterback” when it comes to decision-making in the heat of the moment.
Watt said once the ball is snapped, it is not as easy for players to know exactly where the marker is to convert a first down.
“Once the play starts, he's dropping back. He's looking through his reads. He's scrambling up through the line. There's no yellow line on the field,” Watt said. “He's just trying to get to where he thinks the first down is. He's in the middle of the field between the hashes, so he's doing his best. He's not 100% sure he has it.”
Watt said the result of Tagoviola trying to make the play and being hit is “an extremely unfortunate situation.”
He said he knows what it is like to have fans criticize your every single decision. He explained that if Tagovailoa had given himself up and slid to protect himself, the QB would have been criticized for not being tough enough or doing what it takes to win.
“So all I'm saying is just keep that same energy on both sides,” Watt said.
