When Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa stepped before reporters for his press conference on Wednesday, the first questions he fielded weren’t about the Dolphins returning from their bye week to tackle the second half of their 2023 NFL schedule.

They were about his hair.

The former Alabama All-American came out of the bye with a different hairstyle, and the braided rows on the top of his head have caused a stir.

“I got them done last week,” Tagovailoa said. “It’s been in for a week and a couple of days. …

“It was my call. My hair was outrageous, so I thought if I didn’t braid it or if it wasn’t long enough, I would just cut it, so I just thought I’d get it braided.”

Tagovailoa said his teammates and, maybe more importantly, his wife like his new look. On social media, his new look is being compared to the recording star Drake.

“It was just one of those things where my hair was wild,” Tagovailoa said. “I wanted to see what I could do with it. If I couldn’t do anything, I was going to chop it off. But Drake? I don’t know if I look like Drake.”

Miami lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 21-14 on Nov. 5 in Frankfurt, Germany, in its final game before its open date. But with a 6-3 record, the Dolphins will return to action holding a 1.5-game lead in the AFC East.

Miami’s schedule resumes at noon CST Sunday, when the Las Vegas Raiders visit Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.