Dolphins' Tua Tagovailoa Preparing to Start vs. Steelers, Mike McDaniel Says

Tua Tagovailoa's return is apparently imminent.

The Miami Dolphins looked like AFC contenders when he was under center but have tumbled down the standings since he suffered a concussion during the Week 4 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

Miami head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters the quarterback is preparing as if he will take the field for Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

"He's a captain. He's a captain for a reason, and as I've told you guys from the onset, I think he's a very, very good player at that position," McDaniel said.

"So very good players, they definitely give people a boost—not because of what other people aren't but more just because he is who he is. So he's a strong fabric of this team, and that's exciting when you get to go play with one of your brothers, which is why the team will be excited, and it will be exciting."

Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN noted Tagovailoa cleared concussion protocol Saturday but remained sidelined for the Week 6 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

His situation generated plenty of headlines, as he stumbled when attempting to get up after hitting his head hard during a Week 3 win over the Buffalo Bills and then played four days later in the Bengals game. He suffered a concussion against Cincinnati in a scary scene and was even briefly hospitalized as a result.

The Dolphins and Tagovailoa said it was a back injury that caused the stumble in the Bills game, and he also passed a concussion examination before returning to the field. Yet there was plenty of criticism and even an investigation into how he was handled.

The NFL and NFL Players Association announced it modified the concussion protocol as a result of the investigation.

McDaniel wants Tagovailoa to play with a bit more caution when he returns.

"One thing for him is you love his competitive nature, but there is a time in a play where you have to kind of concede, and that's where he's kind of been focusing on because it's something that's not natural to him," the coach said. "He wants to break every tackle, and he doesn't like when plays don't work. Well, sometimes they won't."

Miami started 3-0 with impressive wins over potential playoff contenders in the New England Patriots, Baltimore Ravens and Bills, but they lost the Bengals game with Tagovailoa sidelined and proceeded to lose to the New York Jets and Vikings without him the next two weeks.

Perhaps his return can help the Dolphins make up ground in the AFC East because they are now 3-3 and staring up at the 5-1 Bills and 4-2 Jets in the division standings.

Tagovailoa has completed 69.6 percent of his passes for 1,035 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions this year.