U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ-09), the founder of the Congressional Brain Injury Task Force,  is today demanding answers on the severe head injury to Miami Dolphins star quarterback Tua Tagovailoa just four days after he likely sustained another head injury. In a letter to National Football League (NFL) Commissioner Roger Goodell and Miami Dolphins principal owner Stephen Ross, Pascrell seeks information on how Tagovaiola was allowed on the field Thursday night.

“I, like millions of Americans, am disturbed about what happened in Thursday night’s contest between the Cincinnati Bengals and Miami Dolphins. The concussion to Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa on national television, occurring just four days after he was injured in a game, demands immediate answers from the Miami Dolphins organization and the National Football League,” Pascrell writes Goodell and Ross. 

It appears that Mr. Tagovailoa may have suffered a concussion on Sunday, September 25 in Miami’s game against the Buffalo Bills. And yet, he was back on the field Thursday, September 29 against Cincinnati, raising dire questions on whether the Dolphins and NFL officials disregarded Mr. Tagovailoa’s safety to rush him back into action.

For two decades, Rep. Pascrell has been a leader in advancing brain injury policy on Capitol Hill. Pascrell co-founded the Congressional Brain Injury Task Force in 2001 and has served as task force co-chair since its inception. The Brain Injury Task Force works to increase awareness of brain injury in the United States, supports research initiatives for rehabilitation and potential cures, and strives to address the effects these injuries have on all Americans, including children, members of the Armed Forces, and athletes.