Ryan Tannehill Contract Option Picked Up by Dolphins: Latest Details, Reaction

Three weeks into the 2014 NFL season, Ryan Tannehill was teetering on the edge of losing his job. One stellar bounce-back later, and the Miami Dolphins are showing their commitment to him as their franchise quarterback.   

The Dolphins announced they have picked up Tannehill's fifth-year contract option on Wednesday, as first reported by Pro Football Talk.

PFT's Mike Florio reported the financial terms:

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Tannehill will be entitled to the same $16.1 million salary for the fifth year of his deal as Colts quarterback Andrew Luck and Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III will receive.  The compensation is guaranteed for injury until March, at which time it will become fully guaranteed.

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It's beginning to appear more and more likely that the former first-round pick will remain in Miami for the foreseeable future. He recently talked about his excitement for the 2015 season as well as the process of learning a new system, per Alain Poupart of the team's official website:

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It’s huge. Anytime you’re learning a new system, you’re kind of behind the 8-ball because you’re picking up all these new things, you’re not really able to go out and do it fully on your own because you don’t know exactly what to do.

Right now, I feel comfortable with where we’re at in the offense where I feel comfortable taking the guys out, taking them through plays, taking them through routes, whereas last year at this time I kind of did but you really don’t know until you’ve kind of been through it and heard it directly from the coaches. Being where we’re at now, we can really get a jump start on this year.

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The No. 8 overall pick in 2012, Tannehill's first three seasons were up-and-down affairs. He's improved his quarterback rating every year as a pro but remains a work in progress as a passer, especially when it comes to making downfield throws.

Under offensive coordinator Bill Lazor, the Dolphins all but eliminated Tannehill throwing deep passes last season, employing a system built on instant reads and checkdowns. Tannehill's 53 attempts traveling 20 or more yards through the air were the sixth-fewest among qualifying passers last season, per Pro Football Focus. On a per-attempt basis, he was the least frequent downfield passer in football.

Overall, though, it's hard to argue with Tannehill's execution of the offense. He set career highs in yards (4,045), touchdowns (27) and completion percentage (66.4) while hitting a low in turnovers (13). Allowed to use his legs more consistently, Tannehill also added a career-best 311 yards on the ground.

Chris Trotman/Getty Images

"We're really excited about what he accomplished this year and what he's going to continue to accomplish," general manager Dennis Hickey told reporters, per Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. "...We really like the progress he made and excited about his future with the Dolphins."

Tannehill ranked 12th in Football Outsiders' DVOA metric and 13th in Pro Football Focus' quarterback rating. While it's highly unlikely he has another massive leap to go—his downfield deficiencies have been a problem his entire career and haven't gotten much better—he's light years ahead of where Miami was at quarterback before him. 

We've seen flawed passers like Joe Flacco and Eli Manning in recent seasons ride a hot wave and solid supporting cast to a Super Bowl. Tannehill certainly has potential on that level. He might even wind up being a better all-around quarterback than Manning or Flacco if the 2014 trends continue. That the Dolphins picked up his fifth-year option is proof they're confident Tannehill can handle the bright lights.

Now it's just up to the front office to work out a long-term deal for him and build a cast of characters good enough to give him a shot.   

Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter