The Miami Dolphins and new head coach Brian Flores have found a new quarterback..perhaps. What exactly is the plan going forward for the franchise?
Over the last few days, the Miami Dolphins made some news when it came to the future of their quarterback position.There was an attempt to lure away Teddy Bridgewater from the New Orleans Saints. But the one-time first-round draft choice of the Miami Dolphins opted to remain in the Big Easy.
Of course, Ryan Tannehill was not in the team’s plans going forward. Somewhat surprisingly, the team was able to deal the 2012 first-round pick to the Tennessee Titans.After starting every game for the club during his first four seasons in the league, injuries had taken their toll the past three years. Tannehill missed the stretch run in 2016, all of the following season and was around for only 11 games in ’18.
He would throw for 1,979 yards and 17 scores (9 interceptions) this past season. He was also sacked 35 times and lost four of his five fumbles. That’s 13 turnovers in 11 outings, more than half the team’s total (23) in 2018.
Hence the decision to add journeyman quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick has to be somewhat perplexing considering his penchant for mistakes. Yes, he became the first player in NFL history to throw for at least 400 yards in three consecutive games this past season. But when it was all said and done, a hot start digressed into a less-than-ordinary showing. Like Tannehill, there were 17 TD passes and 13 turnovers – the latter courtesy of 12 picks and one lost fumble.
Back in 2015 in his first season with the New York Jets, the former Harvard standout set a franchise record for touchdown passes (31), was picked off only 15 times and threw for a career-best 3,905 yards in leading the club that would finish with a 10-6 record. Since then, there have been 28 games (21 starts), 36 scoring tosses, 32 interceptions and 13 fumbles (2 lost).
Obviously, the 14-year veteran is not a long-term solution for a team that’s made the playoffs only twice since 2002. But is the addition of Fitzpatrick even a good lateral move for a team that is now under the command of former New England Patriots’ defensive whiz Brian Flores – the franchise’s seventh head coach since 2007?
With the signing of Fitzpatrick, who joins his eighth different team, the Dolphins’ list of quarterbacks on the roster grows to three with Jake Rudock and Luke Falk. But is there something else in the works? There was a report that Colin Kaepernick had interest in a job with the Dolphins (via CBS Sports Jason La Canfora) but has that changed. If there is a Josh Rosen sweepstakes of sorts (depending on what the Arizona Cardinals do with the first overall pick in April), are Flores and company all in?
The New England Patriots are reigning Super Bowl champions for the third time in five years. Both the Buffalo Bills and New York Jets have been very proactive this offseason and have young quarterbacks in Josh Allen and Sam Darnold, respectively. Meanwhile, these Dolphins look like a team simply treading water these days. If they have a secret when it comes to their future at quarterback, they are doing an excellent job keeping it.