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Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is debuting a new look ahead of Sunday’s Week 9 road game against the Buffalo Bills.
“Just did it,” Tagovailoa told reporters on Wednesday about the decision to dye his hair.
Tagovailoa is preparing to make his second straight start after returning from IR following his Week 2 concussion diagnosis. He completed 73.7 percent of his passes for 234 yards and a touchdown last Sunday in a Week 8 loss to the visiting Arizona Cardinals.
Tagovailoa wore a similar hair color during his college career with Alabama, where he led the Crimson Tide to victory in the national championship game against Georgia in 2018.
The Dolphins quarterback also made a mid-season hair change last season, when he returned after a Week 10 bye with braided cornrows.
The Dolphins went on to claim three straight victories and win five of their next six games in 2023.
Miami will now hope Tagovailoa’s latest hairstyle change coincides with a similar surge. The Dolphins are heading into Week 9 having lost five of the team’s last six games.
Last Sunday’s loss during Tagovailoa’s return to the field was arguably the most frustrating of the 2024 season so far, as the Dolphins were unable to hold off the Cardinals from getting within range of a walk-off field goal.
Tagovailoa’s return still provides hope for the Dolphins, especially given that he was largely able to avoid taking contact in the loss, and despite the 2-6 season start the team’s playoff hopes aren’t over yet.
The 6-2 Bills head into Week 9 with a commanding lead atop the AFC East, but the Dolphins could still challenge a conference bubble team like the 4-3 Chargers for a spot in the postseason. A win over the Bills on Sunday improves the Dolphins’ playoff odds to 14 percent, while a loss drops them to just four percent, according to Next Gen Stats.
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