Manti Te’o comments on ‘brother’ Tua Tagovailoa’s latest concussion

Amid nationwide speculation on his NFL future, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is reportedly planning to return to the field.

NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport reported Sunday that Tagovailoa will not retire after his latest concussion. Rapoport also reported that Tagovailoa plans to meet with concussion specialists.

Tagovailoa suffered the third diagnosed concussion of his NFL career on Thursday. It was his third in less than two years.

His longtime family friend Manti Te’o weighed in on the conversation as a guest host on “Good Morning Football” on Friday. Co-host Kyle Brandt asked Te’o how he felt and what he thought Tagovailoa should do as his friend.

“I want the best for Tua, the man, the father. He’s a father of two now. I want him to be able to, not today, but 10, 15, 20 years down the line to raise his children, to be able to walk his daughter down the aisle. That’s what I want for Tua. That’s true joy,” he said.

Should Tua Tagovailoa retire from football?

Te’o admitted that he wanted Tagovailoa to walk away from football after his concussion against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 29, 2022. The concussion came four days after the quarterback took a scary hit against the Buffalo Bills that led to concussion concerns. But he was cleared to play the next game, according to CBS Sports.

Tagovailoa suffered another concussion during the Dolphins’ Christmas Day game against the Green Bay Packers. Following the game, he self-reported his symptoms and entered concussion protocol.

“After he suffered the one against the Bengals, I wanted him to walk. When I saw him have to be carted off the field, I wanted him to walk. That was hard, bro,” Te’o said.

Recalling that moment caused Te’o to get emotional.

“What people have to understand is, it’s just a game. Then there’s life. When you watch a young man that you’ve known since he was a little boy, go out there, yeah, is it hard for me? Yeah, but I can’t imagine how it is for Uncle Galu and Auntie Diane to watch their son, again, go down,” he said.

On Thursday, Tagovailoa’s helmet collided with the chest of Bills safety Damar Hamlin, who was starting in his second game since going into cardiac arrest during a game. Tagovailoa’s head hit the ground after the tackle.

“(Dolphins captain) Calais (Campbell) mentioned it was so good to watch him stand up. For somebody that’s been in that situation, who has had a concussion, I don’t even know if Tua was there as he’s walking off the field,” Te’o said.

Te’o noted the precautions Tagovailoa has made to mitigate concussion risk, including a new helmet and losing weight. Te’o said it was “big” to watch Tagovailoa suffer a concussion again but he will leave the decision to walk away up to his “little brother.”

“I just hope for my little brother that he sees and he understands — knowing that his makeup, he understands — what’s important in life, and I just hope he makes the right decision,” Te’o said. “I’m not going to make that decision for you. I’m not saying to step away from the game. As a brother, I just want the best for you and whatever that looks like for Tua and the Tagovailoa family, that’s what I want for him.”

What Manti Te’o said about his concussion history

Te’o opened up about his own concussion experience during the show. In a 2016 AFC divisional round playoff game for the Chargers, Te’o was diagnosed with a concussion, he explained.

The former middle linebacker admits not remembering the moments directly after the hit.

“There’s been clips of me after concussions, getting off the ground, walking off the stadium, walking into the locker room. I don’t remember those walks. It’s like I wake up — I remember when it was a playoff game against the Broncos, I got knocked out the second quarter of that game. I got up. The camera footage shows me walking into the locker room. Kyle, I didn’t wake up, I didn’t come to until the fourth quarter. It was two minutes left in the fourth quarter, and I was sitting in the locker room trying to figure out why am I in Denver,” he said.

Are Manti Te’o and Tua Tagovailoa related?

Although Te’o called Tagovailoa his little brother, the two are not related.

Both were born in Hawaii and played high school football in Honolulu. As a kid, Tagovailoa attended one of Te’o’s football camps, according to Bleacher Report.

“It was awesome when Manti had his camp in Hawaii and I got to go. When you meet someone like that, it’s cool when you’re at such a young age. Now that I’m grown up, I’m able to do the same and give back to my community and the community that helped shape me into who I am today,” Tagovailoa said of Te’o in 2021.