Does Dolphins QB Ryan Tannehill Have a Chance Against Lions Defense in Week 10?

Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill has been playing smart, efficient football as of late, which has certainly helped his team during its current three-game winning streak.

Perhaps the tutoring from former Dolphins great Dan Marino has helped the former Texas A&M standout finally turn that NFL corner. Perhaps the addition of Bill Lazor as offensive coordinator (an increased dose of zone read has certainly helped) has provided room to grow. Maybe the 26-year-old signal-caller is just finally "getting it."

Whatever the case, we have seen a more polished Tannehill than the one that stood under center for Miami over the past couple of seasons. His current 2014 passer rating of 90.9 is much more impressive than the 81.7 he posted in 2013 and the 76.1 in 2012.

Tannehill has been especially impressive over the past three weeks, throwing for 755 yards with six touchdowns and just one interception.

Also impressive of late has been the defense of the Detroit Lions, who are Tannehill's next opponent. 

The Lions have allowed an average of just 15.8 points and 290.4 yards per game this season. Both averages rank first in the NFL this season. Detroit has also allowed an average of just 216.4 yards per contest through the air (fifth in the NFL) while amassing 23 sacks on the season (ninth in the league).

When these two teams meet on Sunday, something is going to have to give.

On paper, at least, it would seem that Detroit has the advantage in this contest. The Lions possess the league's top overall defense, have an offense good enough (20.2 points per game) to put pressure on the opposition to score and are coming off a week's rest and additional game-planning. 

	Yds Per Game	Comp %	TDs	INTs
2012-13	225.21	59.4	36	30
This Season	238.37	63.3	14	6

Since we're talking about the Lions and not the Chicago Bears, we also have to consider home field an advantage as well.

Yet, there are a number of reasons to believe that Tannehill can hold his own against Detroit's dominant defense.

For one, Tannehill has been a more efficient passer this season than numbers might suggest. He currently ranks just 19th in yards passing (1,907). However, he is ranked 11th overall among quarterbacks by Pro Football Focus (subscription required) and 10th in passing.

Pro Football Focus also lists Tannehill as the 13th-best quarterback under pressure. He has completed 49.4 percent of his passes when under pressure with five touchdowns and just one interception. This suggests that Tannehill can overcome the presence of pass-rushing Detroit defenders like Ndamukong Suh, Ezekiel Ansah and George Johnson. 

His mobility and ability to make plays with his legs (245 yards rushing on 31 carries this season) give Tannehill another way to combat the pass rush. 

Tannehill is also very good at working off play action. He is currently ranked sixth overall by Pro Football Focus as a play-action passer. He has completed 56.4 percent of play-action passes with four touchdowns and two picks. 

Considering the Dolphins currently rank fourth in the NFL in rushing (137.2 yards per game), play-action passing should be a big part of Sunday's game plan.

That strong running game should also take some of the pressure off Tannehill, as will a Miami defense that ranks third in both points (18.9) and yards (304.6) allowed per game.

If Miami can prevent the Calvin Johnson-led Detroit offense from putting the Dolphins in must-throw mode, Tannehill shouldn't have to force anything. If the Lions can manage to go up by a couple of scores, however, the third-year quarterback will find himself going head-to-head with an aggressive pass rush and an opportunistic secondary.

The latter scenario could well lead to some game-altering mistakes.

The reality is that this contest isn't going to be determined by any single player. The team that plays more complete as a group is likely to come out on top. It will take a complete team performance for Miami to walk out of Detroit with a victory.

However, Tannehill can certainly do his part by continuing to play smart, efficient football and by limiting costly miscues.