De'Von Achane ruled out with a concussion. What does this mean for the Dolphins?

The concussions have officially started to pile up for the Miami Dolphins.

After initially taking a hard hit towards the end of the first quarter, De’Von Achane was ruled out for the rest of the game against the New England with a concussion. Achane is the fourth Dolphins player to suffer a concussion in 2024.

Two of the Dolphins’ key contributors — left tackle Terron Armstead and cornerback Kendall Fuller — returned Sunday after suffering concussions two weeks ago against the Seattle Seahawks.

Tua Tagovailoa, of course, is the most notable player to have sustained a concussion. His came during a Week 2 matchup against the Buffalo Bills and the quarterback was quickly placed on injured reserve. Tagovailoa, who has suffered at least four concussions, will be available to return after the Dolphins’ Week 7 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts.

While many believed the former Alabama star would hang it up after his latest concussion, Tagovailoa has experienced no symptoms and could potentially return against the Arizona Cardinals on Oct. 27, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. NFL chief medical officer Allen Sills also said the league won’t interfere with the Dolphins’ decision to bring Tagovailoa back.

“Patient autonomy and medical decision-making really matters,” Sills said via ESPN. “And I think that’s what we have to recognize goes on with our concussion protocol as well. Ultimately when patients make decisions about considering their careers, it has to reflect that autonomy that’s generated from discussions with medical experts giving them best medical advice.”

Added Sills: “It’s not like we can put in your number of concussions and how long between them and your age and some unusual constant or Avogadro’s number that always seemed to be in freshman chemistry somehow, and come up with a risk.”

With the loss of Achane, the Dolphins are now down to just two healthy running backs in Raheem Mostert, who also just returned Sunday from a chest injury, and the rookie Jaylen Wright. Jeff Wilson Jr. was inactive for the divisional matchup with a knee injury.

The Dolphins luckily have a bye week on the horizon so Achane’s absence will likely not impact them greatly beyond Sunday.

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