Tua Tagovailoa concussion: Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez says retirement should be next step for Dolphins QB

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa left Thursday's game against the Buffalo Bills with his Third confirmed concussion Two years in and already expected by several NFL greats, for Tagovailoa, Thursday will also be the final game of the 26-year-old signal-caller's football career.

“I'm thinking about retiring here,” Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez said on Prime Video's postgame show, arguing that he would walk away from the NFL if he were in Tagovailoa's shoes. “To me, it seems like a no-brainer. The brain, it's something that can affect you long-term. … For me, it's time to move on.”

Gonzalez, who played 17 seasons in the NFL, added that such a decision would potentially benefit Tagovailoa's long-term health outside of football as well as his family. Fellow retired stars Andrew Whitworth and Richard Sherman agreed with Gonzalez's sentiments, signaling to the Dolphins quarterback that it would be best to treat it as a career instead of fighting to get back on the field.

Tagovailoa has notably suffered at least two concussions during the 2022 NFL season, while he also displayed the same crumpled “fencing” stance he did Thursday against the Bills. The posture, which saw the signal-caller's arm and hand bent abnormally after contact with the head, was a “textbook sign of severe head injury,” CBS Sports HQ injury expert Marty Jaramillo told CBS Sports.

Less than two months after signing a $212 million contract extension with Miami, Tagovailo admitted after the 2022 campaign that he briefly considered retirement because of his medical history.