Worst Miami Dolphins quarterbacks in last 20 years

The Miami Dolphins have had some quarterbacks that simply made you shake your head. Inevitably someone is bound to be left off a list of the worst 10.

With so many still on the Ryan Tannehill hate wagon, it helps to think back to a time when Ryan Tannehill wasn’t on the sideline and a different quarterback was. Fans want to win and that’s understandable but things don’t always drop in your lap like Tom Brady or Andrew Luck. You have to be very lucky or very bad. Miami has always lacked the luck and been just good enough to miss out at the top.

While Tannehill has been starting since he joined the league in 2012 he has become the longest starting quarterback for the Dolphins since Dan Marino. Think about that. Marino last played in 1999 and the Dolphins have not had a quarterback who has started more games than Ryan Tannehill.

Here is a list of the worst of those quarterbacks between Marino and Tannehill. You can let us know which ones we forgot. The order is from bad to the worst.

Number 8: Ray Lucas

Lucas tried but without a supporting cast around him there was no hope. Add to that the fact that Dave Wannstedt was his coach whose offense was tailored for Jay Fiedler it’s no surprse that Lucas started only six games in his career. Lucas holds the dubious honor of having the worst game of any Dolphins quarterback. In 2002 against the Bills he threw 4 interceptions and had two fumbles. He completed only 13 passes the entire game.

Number 7: Brian Griese

Griese started his Dolphins career with a bang. Three touchdowns and no interceptions in a big wen against San Diego. Then the wheels fell off and he was gone by February making only 5 starts.

Number 6: Trent Green

Green isn’t on this list because he was bad, he is on this list because he couldn’t stay healthy. He made only five starts in his Dolphins career and spent more time concussed than healthy. Of course he came to Miami with a serious concussion history but then head coach Cam Cameron didn’t seem to care.

Number 5: Cleo Lemon

Give the man at least a little credit. When the Dolphins needed a win in overtime against the Baltimore Ravens in 2007, Lemon delivered the one pass that needed to be made to get it done. Otherwise who know, the Dolphins could have been the only team in the NFL to win all of their games and lose all of their games.

Number 4: Joey Harrington

Harrington started 11 games but you really wouldn’t have known it.  His passes were too high, too low or were dropped. Harrington had a poor showing in Detroit but some thought he could rebound in Miami. That wasn’t the case and after a single season he was gone.

Number 3: Daunte Culpepper

Culpepper was the big ticket free agent Nick Saban wanted. It was a monumental mistake that Saban who controlled every aspect of the Dolphins while the head coach caved to the assertions of the medical doctors that Culpepper’s knee was far less risy than Drew Brees’ shoulder. One went to a Super Bowl and will be in the Hall of Fame and the other started four games and was released a year later.

Number 2: John Beck

John Beck was one of the worst draft picks of the Cam Cameron/Randy Mueller single season nightmare. Cameron refused to throw Beck into the NFL hoping to develop him but by mid-season he had no choice. Beck started four games and was finally pulled. Ineffient from the start, Beck didn’t last more than a single season in Miami.

Number 1: Pat White

White was supposed to give the Dolphins a huge boost in the Wild Cat system but instead he failed to grasp the offense, didn’t practice well, and couldn’t win the starting job. He did get into game action and took a nasty hit by Pittsburgh Steelers safety Ike Taylor. It was his last game for the Dolphins and while he tried to catch on with another team, he never played another down in the NFL.

In his single season with the Dolphins, White completed zero passes on only five attempts rushing 21 times for 83 yards.

Looking back over the last 17 years the Dolphins have had a laundry list of starters and while they didn’t make this list as being the worst in that time period, Chad Henne, Jay Fiedler, and Gus Frerrote didn’t endear themselves to the Dolphins history books. Even Fiedler and his four years of starting is often behind Chad Pennington’s 19 career games in two seasons.

It says a lot about Ryan Tannehill’s career. He has brought some stability to the team at the position that was obviously lacking and his leadership continues to grow, as does his voice. So before hating, it could be worse because the turnstile could still be going around.