Former Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, one of the top players available for the NFL draft April 23-25, said Wednesday his surgically repaired hip is fully healed and that he could step on a football field and compete at full strength — immediately.
“I feel 100 percent,” Tagovailoa said in an exclusive interview with NFL Network. “I feel like if there was a game today, I’d be able to go out and perform the same way I was able to perform in previous years. I feel as mobile as possible. I feel 100 percent.”
Tagovailoa’s agent, Chris Cabott of Steinberg Sports and Entertainment, told Yahoo Sports earlier this week that the left-handed quarterback’s doctors have medically cleared Tagovailoa, without restrictions.
Teams cannot send their own doctors or trainers to examine any draft prospects or free agents because of rules the league issued related to stemming the new coronavirus pandemic. That has created some angst, not only with Tagovailoa, but other players.
Still, Tagovailoa is expected to be one of the top picks in the draft and the second quarterback selected, behind LSU’s Joe Burrow, who is projected to be selected No. 1 by the Bengals.
Tagovailoa said his agency has provided teams with all the updated medical information possible and has sent some teams video of his workouts, which are taking place under the tutelage of former NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer in Nashville.
He would not divulge which teams he has met with virtually, but he said he limits meetings to just one team a day and his calendar has been full. He added that some team owners have taken part in meetings. Most of the conversations have centered more on football, as opposed to his health, Tagovailoa added.
“I have no control over the circumstance or situation,” he said. “If I was healthy, if I wasn’t, I would have no control. So, the best thing I can do is continue to work. Whatever team decides to choose me, I would be grateful.”