Will Quarterback be Dolphins top priority next year?

It’s still early but given recent history and a tough schedule, Miami’s 1-3 start indicates another losing season is looming. With eyes pointed at Ryan Tannehill as the source of the problem, is Miami already considering his replacement for 2017?

Yes, it’s probably far too early to talk about the 2017 NFL Draft with just a quarter of the season gone by. As it stands, Miami is just two games out of the division lead and the playoff hunt with a dozen still to go. However, the Miami Dolphins and their fans have been down this road too many times before.

More from Dolphins News

The Dolphins have looked awful to start the season and barely escaped Week 3 with a win over the Cleveland Browns in overtime. Last week’s loss to Cincinnati was, arguably, the team’s worst thus far, and proof that the Dolphins really aren’t a good football team. Despite problems on both sides of the ball, QB Ryan Tannehill gets the brute of the blame, and Miami could finally rid themselves of the former first round pick in next year’s draft.

Miami’s schedule doesn’t get any easier this year, despite opening a four-game home stand this week against the Tennessee Titans. Many may look at this as a game the Dolphins should win, but the Titans are much improved this season, mainly due to the addition of DeMarco Murray in an offseason trade. The Dolphins run defense looked better against the Bengals, but Miami still ranks as one of the worst teams in rushing defense. The Titans are expected to unload a heavy dose of Murray this week. A loss here at home will all but wrap it up for Miami early on.

With the Steelers, Bills, and Jets coming to town following the Titans, the Dolphins very well could go 0-4 in this upcoming home stand if they are unable to make a quick turnaround to this disastrous start. Now Tannehill cannot be blamed for all of the Dolphins mistakes, but as the team’s starting QB for the past five seasons, he is the easiest to target.

Supporters of Tannehill will continue to claim that he is not getting the protection he needs and receivers are not getting separation from defenders down the field. That under different coaching regimes, he’s had to learn different playbooks. All are accurate claims. Let’s also remember that Tannehill does not play defense, which has enough problems in their own right. However, when given multiple opportunities with similar results, an organization will eventually become fed up and in search of a replacement.

Some fans are already calling for a rebuild and want to see Brandon Doughty called up from the practice squad to see what he can do. We already know what Matt Moore can do, and at this point in his career, it’s no better than Tannehill. With a trio of quarterbacks expected to come out for next year’s NFL Draft, it can be assumed this is where Miami will again turn to.

Taking another look at Miami’s schedule for the remainder of the season, there doesn’t appear to be many opportunities for victories given the way they’ve played thus far. Under the circumstances, Miami’s ceiling looks to be at or around five wins. Should that generate, Miami will surely have a top 10 pick, maybe even top 5. Sitting at that position, they ultimately could have their choice of the next franchise quarterback.

The top 3 QB names expected to come out for the 2017 NFL Draft are Lamar Jackson, Deshaun Watson, and Brad Kaaya. Both Jackson and Kaaya are hometown boys, with Jackson playing high school football in Pompano Beach, and Kaaya in his third year as the University of Miami’s starter. Watson and Jackson are both early front-runners for the Heisman Trophy this year. All three are projected first round selections. Jackson is probably the top-rated out of the three, but Dolphins fans would welcome either of them with open arms.

The Dolphins will have a lot of holes to fill come draft time, so they may value another position more important than QB for their first round selection. Let us not forget they’ve done next to nothing to help build their defense outside of last season’s blockbuster addition of Ndamukong Suh. Miami continues to make the mistake of trying to build through free agency instead of the draft. In addition to QB, the Dolphins have to address their needs on defense in next year’s draft.

No matter what, Miami will surely select a QB of Adam Gase’s choosing to groom and develop in the early rounds. There is also the chance Miami continues in their ways and goes out to sign a veteran. Drafting a quarterback though would be the preferred option and likely more cost efficient. Gase himself has not done a great job to start his first year as head coach, but he’ll get at least another shot to turn things around.

Like I said before, Tannehill is not fully to blame but it will be his turn to get the boot. His release will be necessary, but will not eliminate Miami’s other issues. Gase and the rest of the coaching staff have not done a good job in games with the play calling and distinguishing themselves from past regimes. The blocking is better, but still far from ideal. The receivers, who are supposed to be one of the stronger positions on this Dolphins unit, continue to drop balls and fail to get separation from defenders. With no identity still at running back, opposing defenses are daring the Dolphins to run the football.

Despite all those issues on Miami’s offense, Tannehill is at the center of it, and therefore deserves the criticism he receives. Gase was brought in to be the whisperer for Tannehill, but the look on his face last week in Cincy was one of irritation with Tannehill. While Tannehill has improved in some areas in each of his first five seasons, he also continues to make similar mistakes.

The Dolphins continue to be one of the worst third down teams in the league with Tannehill at the helm. He also continues to hold on to the ball for extended periods of time with no pocket awareness. And what’s probably the biggest frustration with Tannehill is the amount of times his passes get batted down at the line of scrimmage. At 6′ 4″, this should rarely occur, but instead, happens quite often throughout the course of a game.

What’s even more apparent though is that it seems the players themselves have moved on from Tannehill. They may not voice it publicly or make a deal of it in fear of the team imploding, but the truth is, Dolphins players don’t come to bat for their quarterback. He doesn’t give the impression of a leader as other more elite quarterbacks like Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers do. Players may say things like, “we need to get better as a team” or “it doesn’t fall on just one man”, but how many players on the current roster have actually come out to say Tannehill is their guy?

When the Dolphins gave Tannehill his contract extension in May 2015, it was viewed as a team-friendly deal. Even though the extension goes through 2020, the deal virtually gave Tannehill two more seasons to show improvements or give the Dolphins the option of letting him go. Miami has the option of releasing Tannehill each season from here on out until the contract expires, but it doesn’t look like the Dolphins are willing to wait around.

Soon the Dolphins will have a decision to make regarding Jarvis Landry. As the most consistent player on the Dolphins, Landry will not come cheap in order to keep him. With a ton of money already wrapped up in Suh’s deal, it’s almost certain that Miami will be unable to keep Tannehill and Landry long-term. Between the two, which would you choose?

Tannehill supporters will continue their claims that he hasn’t received a fair shot given Miami’s issues and coaching changes. Unfortunately for Tannehill and his fans, time is up. Roughly about five rookie quarterbacks have already started or appeared in games at some point this season. All of which have put in admirable performances for their respective teams. Tannehill has shown he is capable of putting up big numbers, but he’s lacked the consistency in the process. Wins are harder to come by and Dolphins fans have grown impatient.

There is still the off chance that the Dolphins turn things around this season, but I wouldn’t count on it. We’ve seen this tale before and rarely does it end pretty. If they do, in fact, turn things around and can get in the postseason then Tannehill will have earned his starting position for at least one more year. But if history is any indicator, Tannehill’s days are numbered in South Florida.

Home/Dolphins News