What Must Ryan Tannehill Do to Keep Miami Dolphins Playoff Hopes Alive?

Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill was good enough on Monday night against the New York Jets to keep his team's playoff hopes alive. But he will have to play better in the final four games of the season if his team is going to snap its five-year postseason drought.

At times, Tannehill has shown flashes of becoming a top-tier quarterback. At other times, he has played more like the hapless rookie than the seasoned veteran he's shown himself to be this season. This is not lost on Tannehill, who was asked by ESPN's postgame crew to name the area he must improve in order to permanently insert himself among the upper echelon of quarterbacks.

"Consistency," he said. "I gotta keep improving week-in and week-out." 

Opponent	Cmp	Att	Cmp%	Yds	YPA	TD	INT	Rate
Chargers	24	34	70.59	288	8.47	3	0	125.6
Lions	27	38	71.05	207	5.45	1	1	81.8
Bills	26	34	76.47	240	7.06	2	0	114.8
Broncos	26	36	72.22	228	6.33	3	1	104.9
Jets	25	35	71.43	235	6.71	0	1	77.7
Total	128	177	72.32	1198	6.77	9	3	100.4

He had been improving for four straight weeks, but on Monday night, his progress came to a halt. Despite completing more than 70 percent of his passes for the fifth straight game, Tannehill managed only a mediocre 6.7 yards per pass attempt, and he did not throw a touchdown.

Another high completion percentage does not lend context to Tannehill's performance, which could have been better (if Dolphins wide receiver Mike Wallace had caught a sure touchdown) or worse (if either Jets cornerback Darrin Walls or linebacker Calvin Pace had caught easy interceptions).

Credit: NFL Game Rewind

Tannehill may have also played better if the Dolphins offensive line had afforded him any protection, but according to stats website Pro Football Focus (subscription required), he was pressured on 13 of his 37 dropbacks, sacked twice and completed only five of his 11 pass attempts while under pressure. 

According to Tannehill, some of his struggles throwing the ball down field were due to the Jets' defensive game plan.

"We've got to be more consistent," he said during the ESPN postgame interview. "The Jets did a really good job tonight of buzzing under some deep stuff and making us have to check down. ... It was frustrating [but] you've got to give credit to them."

But let's not be fooled. The Dolphins have not been a good downfield passing team all season. On passes that traveled 20 yards or more downfield, Tannehill has completed eight of 34 attempts with three drops, giving him an accuracy percentage of 32.4, which ranks 30th out of 38 qualifying quarterbacks. 

But even that's OK, because the Dolphins don't need Tannehill to light up the scoreboard. They just need him to not hand an opponent an easy victory. The Dolphins are 5-2 in their past seven games, but it's not because Tannehill is torching defenses.

He has thrown 12 touchdown passes in that stretch, not even two touchdowns per game, but the Dolphins are still winning thanks to his efficiency and his carefulness with the football (four interceptions in the past seven games). That number is comparable to the likes of Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo (three), New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (four), New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (five) and Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (five) among others.

The Dolphins will take it if it means Tannehill provides a steady level of play.

That's especially true in the fourth quarter. Tannehill played some of his best football of Monday night in the final 15 minutes of regulation, completing five of his seven pass attempts on the Dolphins' final two drives, leading his team to 10 points in the fourth quarter. He converted two key 3rd-and-7 plays to extend the Dolphins' final drive.

It's a good thing he helped his team win in the final 15 minutes, because he nearly cost it big time in the first 45 minutes. As noted above, Tannehill nearly helped the Jets on two separate occasions, were it not for some lucky bounces off of fingertips and facemasks. 

Make no mistake; the Dolphins needed a fourth-quarter win in the worst way. They have already lost three games this season (against the Green Bay Packers, Detroit Lions and Denver Broncos) due to late-game heroics from their opponent. No one will confuse the Jets for any of those teams, all of which are playoff contenders, but this was still a monkey-off-the-back win for the Dolphins, and it was thanks to Tannehill's poise in the fourth quarter. 

Rather than spend three quarters nearly squandering a victory, and then one quarter salvaging it, the Dolphins would be even better off if Tannehill simply played at a high level for four quarters, for four more games. That may be easier said than done.

The Dolphins must soon decide whether to extend Tannehill, who will be a free agent following the 2015 season unless the Dolphins pick up the fifth-year option on his rookie contract. If Tannehill can find that all-important consistency, he could make the Dolphins' decision much easier. 

Leading the Dolphins to their first postseason berth since 2008 would be a good way to prove himself worthy of two more years at the helm of Miami's offense. Falling short would be a good way to justify the naysayers who continue to believe Tannehill doesn't have what it takes to be a franchise quarterback. 

With four games left, the margin for error is razor thin. The Dolphins will undoubtedly be playing some very important games this December, but one slip-up, one bout of inconsistency could cost the Dolphins an opportunity to play even more important games in January.

Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained firsthand. Advanced stats acquired via Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

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