Critics slam Amazon Prime’s for ‘dropping the ball’ on Tua Tagovailoa’s concussion

The Miami Dolphins and NFL are not the only organizations to be criticized for the concussion that quarterback Tua Tagovailoa sustained in Thursday’s loss to the Bengals in Cincinnati.

Amazon Prime viewers and media critics took aim at the streaming service after a halftime show that provided no context for Tagovailoa’s injury, instead dwelling on the disturbing images of its aftermath. The Dolphins quarterback appeared to be on the verge of attack when his arms twisted unnaturally as he lay on the turf, much to the dismay of the Amazon public.

Tagovailoa has since been released from a Cincinnati hospital, returned to Miami and is “in good spirits,” according to an ESPN report. No structural damage was found, but team doctors are awaiting MRI results for Tagovailoa.

Thursday’s terrifying injury came just four days after a similar scene in Miami, where Tagovailoa left Sunday’s game against the visiting Buffalo Bills with an obvious head injury, only to return to lead the Dolphins to an upset victory – not that. you would know this by looking at Amazon’s halftime report.

Amazon’s halftime stand — which featured former NFL stars Richard Sherman, Tony Gonzalez, Andrew Whitworth and Ryan Fitzpatrick — failed to remind the public of Sunday’s incident, which is now blamed on an aggravated back injury, not a concussion.

While the team doctors, independent medical staff and Tagovailoa all maintain that he was cleared of a concussion on Sunday, the NFLPA has announced an investigation into the case.

To be fair, Amazon commentator Kirk Herbstreit mentioned Tagovailoa’s first injury during Thursday’s game. And Fitzpatrick was almost in tears during the halftime show as he discussed Tagovailoa, his former Dolphins teammate.

But Amazon’s halftime show nonetheless failed to mention that Tagovailoa may have suffered a significant head injury earlier this week. Likewise, the halftime show failed to educate viewers about the dangers of two concussions within a week. (Again, the Dolphins insist he was cleared of a concussion on Sunday)

Amazon Prime viewers and media critics took aim at the streaming service after a halftime show that provided no context for Tagovailoa’s injury, instead dwelling on the disturbing images of its aftermath. The Dolphins quarterback appeared to be about to attack when his arms twisted unnaturally as he lay on the turf. Amazon’s halftime stand — which features former NFL stars Richard Sherman (far right), Tony Gonzalez (far left), Andrew Whitworth (near right) and Ryan Fitzpatrick (center) — didn’t tell the public about Sunday’s incident, which now be blamed for an aggravated back injury and not a concussion

Tagovailoa was allowed to return on Sunday despite stumbling to the ground and continuing to struggle even after getting back on his feet. Teammates had to help keep the 24-year-old Hawaiian upright before he was taken out of the game just before half time

Syracuse.com’s Mike Waters criticized the halftime show for failing to provide more context

Instead, Prime’s resting position focused on the alarming images of Tagovailoa’s head slamming into the turf and his arms making a disturbing “fencing” motion.

“Amazon Prime halftime crew is just dropping the ball regarding Tua’s injury,” read a tweet from Mike Waters of Syracuse.com. “No mention of Tua’s injury against Buffalo on Sunday or the questions about how the Dolphins handled it or the NFLPA’s investigation.”

“Amazon just did an entire halftime segment on Tua without mentioning that Tua was tested for a concussion 4 days ago or that the NFLPA requested an investigation,” tweeted NFL reporter Gregg Rosenthal.

“To have any credibility, Amazon needs to have someone who will ask the obvious question of whether Tua should have played tonight at all, after what happened on Sunday,” reads a tweet from the Pro Football Talk account.

Former Seattle Seahawks star Richard Sherman previously claimed Thursday Night Football was dangerous as players were forced to compete on short half-time, but failed to include any of those criticisms when discussing Tagovailoa’s injury on Thursday.

Amazon is in the first year of a deal with the NFL to broadcast Thursday Night Football for $1 billion per season. But despite being the newest NFL media partner, the streaming service isn’t judged on a curve.

“Thank God it wasn’t us,” a director of an NFL media partner told Front Office Sports.

The Washington Post’s Dan Diamond claimed that the NFL’s media partners are actually discouraging announcers from dwelling on concussions.

“And for those who ask why Amazon’s halftime show failed to acknowledge the controversy over Tua’s apparent head injury on Sunday — media partners who have tried to talk about concussions have faced a competition backlash,” Diamond tweeted. “Just ask Bob Costas.”

Former NFL defensive lineman and ESPN analyst Chris Canty accused the NFL Friday of prioritizing gains on player health.

“So all of this is driven by money,” Canty said. “The NFL is all about protecting its own interest.”

The Washington Post’s Dan Diamond claimed that the NFL’s media partners are actually discouraging announcers from dwelling on concussions

Front Office Sports asked a number of broadcasters for their reaction on Friday.

They said every NFL TV affiliate from ESPN and Fox Sports to CBS Sports and NBC Sports is likely to hold a production meeting today to ask themselves:

How would we have covered Tagovailoa’s injury?

‘What would we show the viewers – and how often would we show it?

“Has Amazon done something wrong that we can do right?”

An executive told FOS it’s a no-win situation.

ESPN’s Mike Greenburg may have struck the right note with viewers Friday by telling his audience that he would show the replay once, and only once.