A Long Ball Solution For Miami Dolphins Ryan Tannehill

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, the problem with that is Miami Dolphins QB Ryan Tannehill can’t throw the ball in a straight line. This has been an Achilles heel for the Dolphins since Tannehill entered the league and the worst part is he not only isn’t getting closer the Dolphins offense are rarely taking the shot downfield. Miami’s offense needs that big play threat to open up the underneath and frankly teams are no longer worried about Mike Wallace.

So what is there to do?

Ryan Tannehill is one of those rare quarterbacks that does so many things right that you can’t help but feel he is a long term franchise solution but his game is stuck between the 0-20 yard range and he does himself no favors by his inability to open the field. The Dolphins have tried a lot of things but it seems that he has had the most success rolling out. I have said for quite awhile now that Tannehill thinks to much instead of just playing the game. He is getting much better in that regard but his long ball still isn’t improving and it’s no longer a timing issue.

What I have noticed is that when Tannehill throws deep Wallace is running the fly route which puts him straight up field in position to out run coverage. It doesn’t matter if it is along the sidelines or down the middle, the route is always the same straight fly, and we know that Tannehill can’t throw that ball. So why not change the route?

After watching film on Tannehill and his throws he plays much better when he can see his target. Hook routes, curls, and into the flat. If he can’t visualize the play he can’t make the play. I see this week in and week out. So why not change Wallace’s route to allow Tannehill to see him?

Wallace is very fast and there is no reason that instead of running a fly route that he can’t break it 20 yards downfield and run to the opposite corner of the end zone. His speed will still make separation but now Tannehill can see his angle, see where he needs to put the ball. It’s the one thing I haven’t seen the Dolphins try deep although they have had success running similar plays at a shorter distance. Tannehill is very good at catching players out of their breaks so why not test it deep to the corner?

It may not work, I honestly don’t know if Tannehill’s problems are visual or mechanical but nothing else is working. We see that to be true each week for the last two seasons. The truth is this is a completely different offense if Tannehill can hit Wallace deep and Wallace will be a helluva lot happier. It’s just a suggestion but one that the Miami Dolphins may want to consider looking at. Let Tannehill “see” Wallace and you take the guess work part of it out.