Sunday Hot Takes: Miami Dolphins QB Ryan Tannehill Will Rise

For the past two years, people have talked about Ryan Tannehill as a breakout player. Is this the year the Miami Dolphins signal caller finally breaks out?

The last time the Miami Dolphins made the playoffs, Chad Pennington was the quarterback. The last time the Dolphins had a legitimate, upper-echelon quarterback, Dan Marino was at the helm.

Since then, however, Miami’s quarterback situation hasn’t been anything to note. A myriad of mediocrity plagued the team during the mid-to-late 2000s. In an effort to bolster the group, the Dolphins drafted Texas A & M’s Ryan Tannehill in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft.

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After Tannehill’s ‘okay’ rookie year — 3,294 yards, 12 touchdowns, 13 interceptions and a 76.1 quarterback rating — a lot of people were expecting the ex-Aggie to break out in year two.

That didn’t happen, as Tannehill once again performed “just all right”. That’s been the regular story for Tannehill. While fellow young quarterbacks have ascended the index, Tannehill has remained in the mid-to-low tier.

One could even classify Tannehill as “controversial.” Back in May of 2015, the Dolphins inked Tannehill to a $96 million extension, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported.

The deal garnered a predictable amount of mixed reactions. As fellow staff writer Luke Sims alluded to in a previous piece, Tannehill hasn’t played like a franchise QB, despite having the bells and whistles that accompany one.

Tannehill’s never thrown more than 27 touchdowns in a season. He’s never thrown less than 12 interceptions, or more than 4,210 yards.

That will all change this year. That’s right, I’m going all in with Ryan — dude’s got a great name, by the way.

Here’s why.

First off, people need to remember Tannehill didn’t even start his college career as a quarterback. Because of that, one would expect Tannehill to struggle getting adjusting to the NFL.

The dude’s only played quarterback since 2009, after all.

I also believe Tannehill will be asked to do more for the Dolphins this year. The Dolphins’ run is still an anomaly, so expect new head coach Adam Gase to rely on his quarterback.

Tannehill possesses all of the physical tools to succeed, and he’s displayed flashes of that during his first four years in the league. Tannehill’s displayed he can be a fairly accurate passer, too. His career-high came in 2014 when he completed 66.4 percent of his passes. That was good for sixth in the league (minimum 200 attempts).

And while I’m not a huge believer in the “Adam Gase fixed Jay Cutler” belief, there’s no denying Gase has the pedigree to work with quarterbacks.

Just a side note: Tannehill has never, ever missed a start. That’s a tremendous amount of consistency, especially for a young quarterback who was thrown into the fire from week one of his rookie year.

Furthermore, the talent around Tannehill is favorable to say the least. At this point, we all know how potent Jarvis Landry is. The man nicknamed “Juice” established himself as a physical, Anquan Boldin-esque receiver last year, after a strong rookie year. He may not be the flashiest receiver like his LSU brother Odell Beckham Jr., but Landry is certainly a top-flight player.

Opposite Juice, second-year man DeVante Parker, who reminds me a lot of an early career Hakeem Nicks, is bound to enjoy a strong second year. He’s a physical player who ascends the proverbial ladder to snag balls in the air.

Additionally, Miami nabbed two talented rookie receivers in Leonte Carroo and speedster Jakeem Grant. The tight end situation is also favorable. Veteran Jordan Cameron and rookie Thomas Duarte are the two most noteworthy names in the unit.

Dec 14, 2015; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) throws a pass against the New York Giants during the first half at Sun Life Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /

So what kind of jump can fans expect from Tannehill? See, here’s where things get tough. I don’t think Tannehill will become and MVP contender the same way Cam Newton did a year ago.

Here’s what I’ll say. Tannehill has the physical tools, poise and weapons around him. What that means is that Tannehill needs to start racking up some signature wins. You know, the wins people talk about years down the line.

Wins like Cam Newton’s upset in Seattle last year, Matthew Stafford‘s 2013 comeback against Dallas and Kirk Cousins‘ “You Like That” game against Tampa Bay.

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Tannehill securing a playoff spot for the Dolphins would also do wonders in expediting his surge. That’s easier said than done in a division occupied with a pesky Bills team, a talented Jets squad and a pissed off Patriots unit.

If he doesn’t collect any big wins, then his efforts may go unnoticed. However, there’s a lot of reason to believe this will be the year Tannehill gets recognized by insiders and savants of the game consider Tannehill an upper-level quarterback.

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