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NFL players association executive director DeMaurice Smith revealed that the union will 'pursue every legal option' on how Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was handled over the last week after suffering two major injuries in a week's time. The investigation on how the injured QB was permitted to play on Thursday after going down last Sunday against the Buffalo Bills after taking a hit from linebacker Matt Milano.

This was followed by Tagovailoa suffering a horrific head and neck injury during Thursday night's game against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Alabama alumn was brought down with a second-quarter sack by Bengals nose tackle Josh Tupou which caused the QB’s head to whiplash to the ground. Moments later, Tagovailoa suffered a minor seizure as the fingers on both his hands were up in a rigid position.

DeMaurice Smith, in his statement, addressed that the NFLPA will be taking up the legal route as the rules were applied to avoid a situation like this. "We insisted on these rules to avoid exactly this scenario," Smith said. "We will pursue every legal option, including making referrals against the doctors to licensing agencies and the team that is obligated to keep our players safe."

Similarly, NFLPA president J.C. Tretter also issued a statement on Friday regarding the incident as he expressed anger and frustration with Tua’s treatment. He then stressed how errors like these could affect a player’s well-being not only in his playing career but also later in his life. "We are all outraged by what we have seen the last several days and scared for the safety of one of our brothers," Tretter said.

"What everyone saw both Sunday and last night were 'no-go' symptoms within our concussion protocols. The protocols exist to protect the player and that is why we initiated an investigation. Our job as the NFLPA is to take every possible measure to get the facts and hold those responsible accountable," Tretter continued.

"We need to figure out how and why the decisions were made last Sunday to allow a player with a 'no-go' symptom back on the field. Until we have an objective and validated method of diagnosing brain injury, we have to do everything possible, including amending the protocols, to further reduce the potential of human error. A failure in medical judgment is a failure of the protocols when it comes to the well-being of our players."