Why Adam Gase Makes Sense for Miami Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins hired former Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Adam Gase to fill their head coaching vacancy.

The Miami Dolphins will put their trust in Adam Gase to lead their football team. He’ll become the youngest head coach in the NFL as documented by ESPN’s Adam Schefter:

After spending three years as a Graduate and Recruiting Assistant at Louisiana State under Nick Saban, Gase spent 13 seasons in various NFL positions.

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Recently, Gase worked as a quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator with Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning for three seasons (2012-14). Then, he joined John Fox’s coaching cabinet as an offensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears.

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The young coordinator has ascended quickly with rock-solid experience, approval from past players and offensive success. We’ll chronicle some flashpoints throughout Gase’s NFL career.

Peyton Manning Endorsement

One of the most well-respected signal-callers in the league swore by Gase’s success as a play-caller. When Manning speaks, people listen, and he spoke highly of his former offensive coordinator, who’s two years his junior, per ESPN.com’s Jeff Legwold:

"I don’t think you need me to sit up here and campaign for him, I guess. Last year I talked to a couple teams on the behalf of him that reached out to me. That may happen again, so I’m certainly glad to share my thoughts, I mean it’s pretty well documented my thoughts on him because I don’t think he needs me to stand up here and campaign for him. I’m excited he has the opportunity he’s going to have this week. He deserves it, I think teams that he talks to will be impressed."

Manning said this prior the Broncos’ Divisional Round loss to the Indianapolis Colts in the 2015 postseason.

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Keep in mind, Gase worked with Manning after multiple neck surgeries and one full season out of action.

The Broncos’ surgically-repaired signal-caller threw 94 touchdown passes and 25 interceptions in two full seasons with Gase as the play-caller. Manning has thrown nine touchdowns and 17 interceptions after the young coordinator’s departure.

The Broncos offense ranked top five in points scored per game during the two seasons Gase assumed play-calling duties:

Jay Cutler’s Improvement

Bears quarterback Jay Cutler possesses the skill set of a high-end signal-caller, but his poor decisions in the pocket have plagued his career. He’s characterized as a talented, but high turnover-prone, quarterback likely to toss a few passes to the wrong jersey.

In 2015, Cutler registered his best QB rating (92.3) and his second-lowest interception percentage rate (2.3):

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Chicago didn’t field a powerhouse offense, partially due to several injuries at the wide receiver position, but Cutler gained a disciplined composure over the course of the season.

Opposing defenses could no longer count on multiple interceptions to shift momentum against Bears. Cutler only registered one multi-interception performance, in the season finale against the Detroit Lions.

The Tannehill Task

Why is it important to chronicle Gase’s influence on quarterback play? His new employer, the Dolphins would like to develop quarterback Ryan Tannehill, who signed an extension worth $96 million in May.

Tannehill’s numbers weren’t terrible during the season (24 TD, 12 INT and 4,208 yards), but the Dolphins must provide their young quarterback with stability and enforce accountability.

The statistics won’t show the tumultuous season the team endured, firing Joe Philbin after four games, and relieving Bill Lazor of his offensive play-calling duties nearly two months later.

In addition to the firings, unflattering information surfaced about Tannehill’s behavior on the practice field, per NationalFootballPost.com writer Aaron Wilson.

Though talented, Tannehill’s attitude will challenge Gase’s ability to manage a team on a psychological level. Nonetheless, Cutler’s enigmatic attitude makes Tannehill seem mild. Furthermore, the Dolphins have done their due diligence in the hiring process. The self-proclaimed leader of the defense, Ndamukong Suh, became part of the process, per NFL Network’s Jeff Darlington:

Offensive skill players have backed Gase as a top-notch offensive mind, and the Dolphins seemed impressed with the interview, inking their new head coach to a five-year deal with full control of the roster, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport:

Of course, in today’s NFL climate, those parameters could change after a couple of losing seasons.

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Based on Gase’s previous work, the Dolphins hired the right coach to upgrade and maximize the offense. Nonetheless, it’s up to the new head coach to align himself with a brilliant defensive mind to light a fire under an underachieving defense that allowed 24.3 points and 376.2 yards per game.

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