Miami Dolphins Offseason Overview: The Quarterbacks

After becoming a free agent following the 2009 season, it remains to be seen whether or not Chad Pennington will have a place on the 2010 Miami Dolphins.

The former Jet led the Dolphins to the playoffs in his first season, earning Comeback Player of the Year honors and finishing second in the voting for MVP. In his second year Pennington went down for the count with a shoulder injury in the third game of the season and was placed on Injured Reserve.

Chad Henne took over at the helm and although he played inconsistent- as most first-year starters do—the second-year player showed why the Dolphins were so high on him after selecting the former Michigan product in the second round of the 2008 Draft.

In the 13 games Henne started he led the team to a 7—6 record, surpassing 300 yards passing twice in his last three games. In five contests, he had over a 60 percent pass completion rate and also added four turnover-free outings. Those numbers don't dazzle, but they display the intangibles.

The three fourth quarter comebacks he led the Dolphins to victory said something about this guy's resolve as well. He's a long way from catching Dan Marino— 37 fourth quarter comebacks—but Henne proved he's in the driver's seat to be Miami's future under center. When Henne's focused, he can be lethal and he's the real deal.

Henne owns the Dolphins huddle. Players have said as much since his first mini-camps back in 2008. He speaks with authority and confidence and the 24-year old is a born leader with a cannon strapped to his arm. His work ethic is rarely seen by someone so young. Clearly, he got that from Pennington.

Studying under his tutelage, Henne watched the elder Chad play for over a year and did everything the former starter asked of him. Pennington was never the most talented of athletes, but his 65 percent completion rate is the best in NFL history.

That’s preparation and decision-making. That’s exactly the lesson Pennington handed down to his successor. It was part of his job from the beginning to do so.

With Pennington scheduled to be a free agent before the upcoming season, will Parcells be as enthusiastic to sign him as he was a couple seasons ago?

Some believe that Tony Sparano’s reluctance earlier in the offseason to name Chad Henne the 2010 starter at quarterback had a lot to do with what happens with “the other” Chad. Too much is being read into this.

Henne hadn't earned that honor yet. He didn’t do what Pennington did in 2008 to be named the 2009 starter. Henne struggled at times and on occasion looked every bit his age.

Sparano wasn't going to just crown the kid as early as he'd done for Pennington, as that isn’t his style. At the scouting combine, general manager Jeff Ireland called Henne "the future of the franchise right now." There shouldn't be any debate about where the second-year QB stands after a comment like that.

But where exactly does Pennington fit in? He doesn’t. The Dolphins won’t try and bring him back as a starter, it's too late for that. They would love him as Henne’s back-up, but 34-years old wants to play, so you can scratch that, too.

Pennington’s going to end up being a starting quarterback next season, just not for Miami. Someone will jump at the chance to sign him, much like Parcells did in 2008. He might even thrive, but the Dolphins wouldn’t be missing out.

Henne is their future. Taking him out of the starting line-up after less than a full season on the job would cripple the guy’s progress and everyone inside the Dolphins organization knows it. So does Pennington.

All of this is why he’ll be the consummate pro he’s always been and bow out graciously. That’s just who he is.

As for the rest of the Dolphins quarterbacks, the “competition” will be an interesting one this summer. Tyler Thigpen and Pat White don’t stand much of a chance of dethroning Henne as the starter, but it also isn’t clear what their respective roles will be either.

Thigpen was acquired from Kansas City after Pennington went on I.R. and the 25-year old raised some eyebrows down the stretch.

In Miami’s last game of the season against the Pittsburgh Steelers, he took over for an injured Henne and lead two touchdown drives in the fourth quarter to make the contest interesting. The Steelers went on to win, but Thigpen proved he’s no slouch.

He’s more athletic than most people think and can scramble with the best of them. Thigpen has a strong arm and quick feet and excels when throwing on the run out of the bootleg. He might just find a home as an option at trigger—man in the Wildcat formation.

That job was expected to belong to Pat White, but the last of the Dolphins quarterbacks hasn’t figured it yet. In his first season, White failed to complete a pass. He had a few nifty runs in limited action, but otherwise showed little as a quarterback.

The former West Virginia standout struggled to translate his college success to the pros—which was the major knock on him entering the draft. He may just figure things out, but don’t expect too much from him next season. White will be playing third—string and won’t have many chances to find the field.

With the emergence of Henne and the contribution of Thigpen, White will find himself on the outside looking in when it comes to reps at quarterback in 2010.

The position as a whole looks solid going forward though. The Dolphins are deep at QB and the potential is there for fireworks.

Quarterbacks Grade: B