Hill: Tua’s return to field ‘almost made me cry’

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Miami Dolphins players were ecstatic to see quarterback Tua Tagovailoa return to the practice field Wednesday, perhaps no one more than wide receiver Tyreek Hill.

Tagovailoa practiced for the first time since sustaining a concussion Sept. 12. He was placed on injured reserve the following week and missed the Dolphins’ next four games.

The NFL’s leading passer last season is eligible to come off IR this week, and Hill said Tagovailoa’s return brought a familiar feeling back to the practice field.

“He looked great. Felt like old times,” Hill said. “Me and him connected on a few deep shots today, and that kind of got me feeling good today. I missed that and I missed him. I told him I’ve got to take him and his wife to dinner because I missed him so much. S— was so beautiful, that s— almost made me cry today like just having him in the lineup, having him call the plays, having him direct the offense, like just hearing his voice.

“I know that sounds crazy, but he’s a big part of this team.”

Miami is 1-3 in the four games Tagovailoa has missed. During that stretch, the Dolphins’ offense ranks last in scoring, 31st in offensive expected points added and 29th in yards per game.

Hill’s production has tapered without Tagovailoa. He’s on pace for 833 receiving yards, which would be his lowest total since his rookie season.

After connecting with his quarterback on multiple deep passes during Wednesday’s practice, Hill’s excitement carried into the locker room. Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle said Tagovailoa completed almost every pass he threw to Hill, and that when they’re on the same page, “it normally leads to big plays.”

“It was beautiful. It was so beautiful,” Hill said. “I bet if you go ask every guy in this locker room, just say, ‘Hey, did Tua connect with Tyreek today?’ And if they say, ‘Yeah,’ the next question should be, ‘What was his reaction right after that?’ I just had a big cheese on my face because it just felt so good. Like y’all don’t know what it does to me.”

Tagovailoa was injured after initiating contact to end a scramble against the Buffalo Bills in Week 2. Both Tagovailoa and coach Mike McDaniel agreed that the quarterback has a responsibility to protect himself on the field moving forward.

Hill joked that he and his teammates tell Tagovailoa “all the time” to slide, and that Dolphins fans should cheer for him when he does. Running back Raheem Mostert echoed Hill’s sentiment, adding that Tagovailoa is ultimately the one in control of his actions on the field.

“Oh yeah, we’ve been talking to him ever since his injury,” Mostert said. “I’ve been telling him, ‘Hey, you need to work on sliding.’ And we all joke around and laugh, but on a serious note, he knows that he has to protect himself a little bit better and moving forward, only he can control those things. We can say those things to him until we’re blue in the face, but one thing that I would say that’s always my saying is, ‘Hey, you can bring a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink, right?’

“We’re going to bring Tua to that water, but we can’t make him drink. He has an understanding of that, and moving forward, he’s going to do his best.”

Tagovailoa was a limited participant in Wednesday’s practice. To play Sunday, he will need to be a full practice participant either Thursday or Friday. Once he practices in full, he can meet with an independent neurological consultant assigned to the team and receive final clearance to play.

The No. 5 pick in the 2020 NFL draft said he has been symptom free since the day after he sustained the concussion, the third diagnosed one of his NFL career.