Ryan Tannehill: Boom or Bust? 

Just this week, the Miami Dolphins have decided to put their fate into the hands of quarterback Ryan Tannehill, who recently signed an extension with the team. The deal is for six years and worth $95 million dollars.  For a man who has had very little success in the postseason, it leaves fans wondering if the Dolphins are out of their minds. I’m here to explain that maybe signing Tannehill was the best move the Dolphins have made in awhile. Here are a few points to why:

Look at the AFC East QB Situations 

It’s no secret that the Tom Brady and the New England Patriots have run the AFC East for years now, but just how much more does Brady have left in his tank? With Brady aging and set to retire eventually, that would set Tannehill up to possibly become the next in line to run the AFC East. The Buffalo Bills remain unsure if they’ll allow first round quarterback pick E.J. Manuel to make the 53-man roster.  When you take a sneak peek at the New York Jets roster, you won’t find much.  Geno Smith has been nothing short of disappointing so far for the Jets when he had Rex Ryan as his head coach, but will that still be the case? Ultimately it’s fair to say that after Brady retires, Grappalo, Smith, and the unknown Bills QB will not compare to the potential that Tannehill has.

Tannehill the Underdog 

For the most part, fans will take a look at the Super Bowl totals and be very quick to judge who is talented and not.  What these fans don’t realize is that Tannehill really has proved himself worthy of an extension.  The $95 million seems a bit like a stretch, but it goes to show how much faith the Miami organization has in their quarterback.  With Lamar Miller and Jay Ajayi at running back, along with a potential top ten defense, could this be a team playoff threat in the future?

Aging Quarterbacks

What do Brady, Peyton Manning, and Big Ben all have in common? Yes they’re all AFC quarterbacks, but they are also aging AFC quarterbacks. Manning’s stats have begun to decline over the years, and the amount of gas left in the tank is always a red flag when you talk about Brady or Rothlisberger.  The only competing quarterbacks that I view as the future of the AFC consist of Andrew Luck, maybe Phillip Rivers, and of course Ryan Tannehill.

There’s no doubt that overall, the NFL will continue to develop as younger quarterbacks will attempt to lead teams to playoff success.  Ryan Tannehill may not be worth the $95 million dollar extension in the eyes of many, but Tannehill will be the future of the Miami Dolphins community.