Good Ryan Tannehill Returns as Roller-Coaster Season Continues
What may have been lost down the stretch of the Miami Dolphins’ season is how well quarterback Ryan Tannehill has played when things are working smoothly. At other times, Tannehill has struggled to make the impact play that is keeping him out of the top-10 quarterback discussion.
As his third season comes to a close, it shouldn’t be shocking that Tannehill still has his ups and downs. His first season underneath offensive coordinator Bill Lazor has been a roller-coaster ride, but his peaks and valleys haven’t been as drastic as the Top Thrill Dragster. Fortunately, when he’s played his best, he’s easily resembled a quarterback who can be Dolphins' franchise guy.
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Week 16 against the Minnesota Vikings was one of the best games of Tannehill’s career, as he amassed three touchdowns in the second half to get to four total, and he racked up 396 yards on 35 completions. His quarterback rating of 118.7 was the fifth-highest of his career, with his two best coming earlier in the season.
Tannehill’s effectiveness in extending plays and delivering accurate passes allowed Miami to sustain drives with an astounding 36 first downs—a franchise record, according to Chris Perkins of the South Florida Sun Sentinel:
"#Dolphins' 36 first downs today were a franchise record.
— Chris Perkins (@chrisperk) December 22, 2014"
The offense accrued 35 points, with 28 coming in a second-half flurry that showed the potency of what this team can become if execution improves.
Sunday’s performance against the Vikings served as a microcosm for Tannehill’s talents. He tends to miss a few throws per game due to inconsistent accuracy, but in large part, he’s a guy who takes great care of the football and makes the best decision for the offense on nearly every play.
Tannehill made numerous standout plays in a crowded picket on Sunday, so we’re going to break those impressive plays down, as well as a few other impact moments. The significance is that these are the types of plays that are needed as young quarterbacks develop into playoff- and Super Bowl-caliber players.
Despite the Dolphins offense starting slowly again, Tannehill had an early impact play on 3rd-and-6. In the first picture below notice how Tannehill stands tall in the pocket, despite being hit on his dominant side. His throwing motion isn’t interrupted by the defenseman, which shows how strong Tannehill’s core is and his ability to take a hit.
On the bottom screenshot, notice the ball placement. Instead of leading Damien Williams into the safety, Tannehill understood the leverage of Williams’ position on the field to deliver a dart into his chest. By protecting his receiver, Tannehill ensured a first down.
Early in the second quarter, Tannehill’s ability to move through his progressions and manipulate the defense to his advantage was on show. Down 14 points, Tannehill didn’t panic and try to get Miami back into the game with one throw. On a 2nd-and-7, Tannehill dropped back five steps and watched his primary target Brian Hartline clear out the seam for tight end Charles Clay.
In the first photo pane, Tannehill shows that he is willing to take worthwhile risks instead of taking the easier checkdown. The second frame shows Clay is wide-open on a deep crossing route, made possible by Tannehill’s ability to draw multiple defenders to Hartline, while Clay ran unnoticed underneath.
To keep Miami within striking distance later in the game, a touchdown on the drive was absolutely necessary. Fourteen yards out from the end zone, Tannehill found his lone bigger-body target in an advantageous situation. Tight end Dion Sims beat free safety Robert Blanton upfield, and Tannehill rewarded Sims with a pass that only Sims had a chance to make a play on.
The red zone has been an issue for the Dolphins offense in 2014, often due to the lack of a physical offensive line and receivers who lack size and the ability to win while well-covered. Those issues were nonexistent Sunday, as Tannehill later found receiver Mike Wallace on a slant route, despite heavy traffic, and a later touchdown to running back Damien Williams.
Without question, Tannehill really grabbed hold of the game and refused to let the score get out of hand in the second half. The third quarter brought new life to the Dolphins, and Tannehill was the catalyst for the comeback.
Early in the third, Tannehill dropped back and saw some pressure, but again he kept his eyes downfield and maintained proper footwork through his delivery. The result was a rare seam pass to Clay, which was a staple in the Dolphins offense throughout 2013. Tannehill excels on this pass, and it’s no surprise that Clay eventually found success downfield in this familiar role.
En route to the first of the Dolphins’ three touchdowns in the fourth quarter, Tannehill rolled out on a first-down play-action pass.
With defensive end Corey Wootton closing in, Tannehill had a decision to make; either make the play with his arm or his feet. Most young quarterbacks around the league are more comfortable with their athleticism, but Tannehill’s ability to make accurate passes on the move is a huge asset.
Tannehill’s balance and athleticism is key to making an accurate throw on the run, but his eyes and confidence allow him to see past Clay in the flat and go downfield for the better play. Sims finds himself open on the second level of the Vikings defense, and Miami gets closer to an eventual touchdown because of Tannehill’s solid play.
Down seven points with just over four minutes to play, Tannehill again delivered a masterful chunk play. Upon reaching the apex of his drop, both offensive tackles allowed pressure to get into the backfield. Tannehill rolled out and avoided Everson Griffen just enough to get a clean pass off to Charles Clay.
Clay is again open, which is likely due to a combination of improved health and solid game planning by Lazor, and Tannehill did a great job of extending the play to get him the ball in space.
The area where Tannehill has really grown the most this season has been identifying when to step up in the pocket and extend plays. His ability to create plays outside of the pocket has always been present, but now that he’s improvising during broken plays, he’s inching up toward the top 10 quarterbacks in the league when he’s playing well.
Consistency remains an issue for Tannehill, and this season has proved that although he’s much closer to becoming what Miami needs him to be, there are a few decisions or bad passes every week that hold him back. Those plays look to be correctable if Tannehill’s hot streaks can occur more often.
That’s not to say that any quarterback should be expected to be perfect for a complete game. It’s not possible. But sustained solid play helps allow a team to come back from an early deficit and overcome difficult circumstances to gain a victory.
When Tannehill’s been at his best, the Dolphins offense has been one of the best in the league. Other times, he’s been average, and Miami has been caught in tight affairs that force the defense to make stops at crucial times.
The good news for the Dolphins is that Tannehill’s peaks have been very good, and his lowest points of the season haven’t been terrible.
He hasn’t had a ton of help in his first three seasons, especially when compared to the supporting casts of playoff teams. Just this season, his receivers have cost him over 500 yards and eight touchdowns from drops, according to conservative self-charting of Miami’s offense this season.
As Miami is banking on continuity being a positive for the franchise, announcing that Joe Philbin and Dennis Hickey will return in 2015, per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, it needs to try and develop Tannehill into the consistently solid and more often excellent quarterback that he flashes. To ease some of the immense pressure on his shoulder, Miami will likely look to add some more explosive playmakers on the offense.
Although 2014 didn’t bear the playoffs for the Dolphins, Tannehill has established himself as the quarterback for the franchise's foreseeable future. His roller-coaster season has seen very good moments and some head-scratching ones, but there are many more positives than negatives to work with, and there just aren’t more than a baker’s dozen better quarterbacks in the league right now.
Sunday’s performance against the Vikings is yet another steppingstone for Tannehill and the Dolphins offense. He has continued to raise the bar for what is considered a career-type game, which is the progress needed at this stage in his career.
Enjoy the ride, even if this roller coaster doesn’t have many sudden cliffs left in its path.
All stats used are from Sports-Reference.com.
Ian Wharton is a Miami Dolphins Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report, contributor for Optimum Scouting, and analyst for eDraft.
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