Dolphins Clyde Christensen talks Ryan Tannehill

On Thursday the Miami Dolphins introduced their coaching staff officially to the media and Clyde Christensen, the new offensive coordinator talked about his new quarterback Ryan Tannehill.

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Whether by design or just off the top of his head, Christensen talked up Tannehill. At least on the surface he sees some great potential in the quarterback who is facing a critical 2016 season.

"“I really enjoyed watching him. I haven’t seen him a bunch. I visited with him and his wife when I came in for the interview and I had a great breakfast with them and as much you can do in an hour there, but I’ve been extremely impressed with him. He’s been extremely productive and he’s played some awfully long stretches of good football. He seems like a guy that has all of the things that you’re looking for. A guy who wants to be good, who has it in perspective and (I’m) really looking forward to seeing him on the field a little bit.”"

Fans may be far more skeptical given the history of Tannehill over the past four seasons. While Ryan has been, as Christensen pointed out, good for stretches there is a serious issue with consistency and issues with closing out games. Very few have faith that given the right coaching Tannehill can become that quarterback who can lead a last minute charge to win a game. He will also need to inspire his players around him and give them the confidence that he can do just that. Christensen believes he can help by being an ally to Tannehill.

"“I think so. I’ve always thought that. From every level of coaching that I’ve ever been at and especially this level, I think that’s a lonely position. That’s a lonely position in this league. It’s lonely in the locker room, it’s lonely on the street, it’s hard to find friends and it’s just a unique position. I’ve always felt like the number one job that I have is to be an ally, to be a safe place where a guy can talk and communicate and have a relationship where you can bounce things off and generate ideas. I’ve always thought the quarterback position is unique that way and I’ve always approached it that way.”"

It wasn’t just Tannehill that Christensen talked about. He told media members that he took the job because of Adam Gase and the fact that they have similar beliefs in the offensive system that they will install. Specifically the kind of offense that he expects the Dolphins to run.

"“I would probably say, again the attraction to this job was that I really enjoyed those years in Indy when we were aggressive. We were no huddle and the players had fun. That’s a big thing, that the players enjoy the system. It’s hard to keep players interested and it keeps getting harder and harder to keep players interested. I think the no-huddle and this style of play where you’re mixing it up and you have the ability to – I think Chicago last year led the league in time of possession – but you’re also taking shots and there’s kind of new stuff and you’re keeping them stimulated. I would say this is the way I like to play. We did it for an awful lot of years in Indy and it’s kind of fun. There is always something new. There are always new codes, there are always new concepts and it’s a wide open, you spread them out, and you still can pop some runs in there, etc. But I do, I like this style of play.”"

While Christensen may believe that he has the right pieces or some of the right pieces and a head coach that will make the offensive system better for everyone the product on the field remains in flux and the offensive line is a big part of that equation. Christensen answered a question about the line as well.

"I think that is a position that the more they play together and the more games together, the better they are going to be. That’s always a fine line with injuries and all those different things. So we’ll go and evaluate it. We do have some good players up there. It’s not an empty cupboard. And then we’ll just kind of look and see how it fits into what we’re trying to do and with what Coach Gase wants to do with this offense. That will be an ongoing evaluation, but we’ve got the process started and again, there are a couple of good young guys.”"

Christensen also said that evaluation of the offensive line would start internally with what they have and then work from there. He said that the team can’t afford to let good players simply leave that they “can’t miss on their own”. He said that he and the coaches spent a lot of time yesterday talking about their own guys. Where that leads to is unknown but the Dolphins will have to decide no later than the draft and possibly before free agency if what they have is something they can work with.

Adam Gase will call the plays as we know and Christensen is fine with that recognizing that it’s part of the game that Gase enjoys quite a bit. He considers himself in a support role which is what he was looking for. Now he needs to be a coach and coach the players he has and will have to make the unit better.