Dolphins Proving to Be Hard to Beat When Ryan Tannehill Is Playing His Best

It takes 22 players to win a football game, but for the Miami Dolphins the outcome is most greatly influenced by one player: Ryan Tannehill.

When he's on, the Dolphins are tough to stop. When he's off, the Dolphins can look like a pushover.

For the past three games and in Miami's 27-14 win over the Chicago Bears in Week 7, we've seen Tannehill play some of his best football. In fact, in the past three games, the quarterback has posted two of the three highest completion percentages of his career. 

Opponent	Comp	Att	%	Yards	YPA	TD	INT	Rate
Raiders	23	31	74.19	278	8.97	2	1	109.3
Packers	20	31	64.52	244	7.87	2	2	83.3
Bears	25	32	78.12	277	8.66	2	0	123.6

Tannehill has all the physical tools to be a successful NFL quarterback; it's his lack of awareness and poor decision-making that get him in trouble. Those issues cost the Dolphins three points at the end of the first half, when the third-year QB took a sack that pushed Miami out of field-goal range. 

It was one of four sacks Tannehill took on the day, and most of them appeared to be a product of his holding on to the ball too long. Whether that was a result of coverage downfield or simple indecision by Tannehill can only be determined by looking back at the film.

For now, give him all the credit in the world for getting into a rhythm and staying in it early. The game couldn't have gotten off to a much better start for Tannehill, who hit his first 14 passes for 176 yards, two touchdowns and a perfect passer rating.

That hot start was thanks to some brilliant play-calling by Dolphins offensive coordinator Bill Lazor. 

"

#Dolphins OC Bill Lazor is playing Ryan Tannehill’s game again. Reminiscent of their Week 1 win vs NE. He’s fantastic if you play to him.

— Christian Hardy (@HardyNFL) October 19, 2014"

Many of Tannehill's early completions were on high-percentage throws where his receivers picked up yards after catching the ball. The Dolphins also used a lot of misdirection early, with play-action fakes and designed bootlegs to get him on the move and out of the pocket.

Tannehill also spread the ball around, hitting eight different receivers for at least two receptions.

But Mike Wallace was once again the favorite target, with five receptions on eight targets for 46 yards and a touchdown. If we're going to give Lazor credit for playing to Tannehill's strengths, we must also give him his due for getting their most explosive playmaker heavily involved on offense. Wallace currently leads the team with 30 receptions through six games.

Dolphins fans were clamoring for better deep-ball chemistry between Tannehill and Wallace, but Lazor has found other ways to get the wide receiver involved. Only two of Wallace's 30 receptions this season have been on passes that traveled 20 yards or more through the air, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

Beyond Tannehill's success through the air, the third-year quarterback also performed well on the ground using read-option runs and scrambling out of the pocket. 

The Dolphins shouldn't put Tannehill in the line of fire too often, but they should do it enough to keep the threat fresh in their opponents' minds. 

"If you're going to do what we do, at times he's going to have to be a runner with the football, and you want him to protect himself as much as he can," head coach Joe Philbin said. "But there's a risk-reward in every play you call, and you know that if you're going to carry the ball, at times you're going to get hit."

For all of Tannehill's success this season, it helps to put some perspective on Sunday's performance. 

The Bears entered the game as the 21st-ranked defense in points and the 16th-ranked in yards. They allowed 7.9 passing yards per attempt, the sixth-highest average in the league. 

This is the same Bears defense that was exposed by Buffalo Bills quarterback EJ Manuel three weeks before he was benched.

The Dolphins don't make their schedule, though, and if they're able to keep Tannehill in this kind of rhythm—regardless of their opponents—they could finally enjoy the playoff success that fans have been longing for.

Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained via team news release.

Follow @ErikFrenz