When the Miami Dolphins selected a six-foot four quarterback out of Texas A&M with the eight overall selection of the 2012 NFL draft, experts scoffed at the supposed reach the Dolphins made. Two seasons later these same knowledge hubs around the league are singing a different tune.
After two back to back 3,000 yards plus passing seasons in which the Dolphins’ quarterback started every game, Tannehill is emerging ahead of another gunslinger taken in the 2012 draft, Robert Griffin III as the second best passer taken that year behind Indianapolis’ Andrew Luck. But does Tannehill’s success behind Miami’s putrid offensive line on an NFL level translate to fantasy football prominence?
When measuring a young quarterback’s readiness, the most vital gauge is that of his improvement from year one to year two. In Tannehill’s case, he improved in nearly every offensive category. The Miami quarterback improved in passing yards from 3,294 to 3,913, in touchdown to interception ratio which jumped from 12-13 to 24-17, completion percentage which improved from 58.3 to 60.4, and in passing yards per game which Tannehill boosted from 205.9 to 244.6 yards per contest. The same can be said for an improvement in his fantasy stock.
After a putrid rookie fantasy football campaign in which Tannehill placed 24th amongst quarterbacks with a pedestrian 244.4 points scored, the following year Tannehill jumped 13 spots to number 11, finishing his year with a respectable 321.5 points. More impressive than the Dolphin’s quarterback’s progress in the passing game is his consistency in the most important area of the field: the red zone.
During the 2013 season Ryan Tannehill attempted 64 passes inside his opponents’ 20-yard line completing 39 of them for a 60.9 completion percentage. In addition to this viable connection rate, Tannehill also managed to toss 18 scores with only one interception. This is an area where the Dolphins’ quarterback is already amongst the league’s elite, a group Tannehill will look to join entering his third season in the league.
While Tannehill himself has been limited by poor offensive line play and a lack of offensive cohesion, new Offensive Coordinator Bill Lazor comes from the Chip Kelly school of philosophy and will implement a higher tempo than the Dolphins have seen in recent years. Furthermore with a newly improved offensive line and greater threat at running back with Knowshon Moreno Tannehill will no longer be forced into the lifeline role for the Dolphins.
Ryan Tannehill will take the next step in his football career in 2014, but will that next move make him into a fantasy goldmine? Currently being taken as the 18th quarterback and 136tho overall player, Tannehill provides solid production at a very late area in the draft. Though he is no Aaron Rodgers or even a Tony Romo, if the choice is between late round quarterbacks like Alex Smith, Josh McCown, or Sam Bradford, you could do a lot worse than a third year quarterback in a new and improved offensive system.