Ryan Tannehill: An Inside Look at the Numbers

With the 8th pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, the Miami Dolphins select Ryan Tannehill Quarterback from Texas A&M. Some may hate the pick, some may love it, but hey, the Dolphins finally took a chance. Joe Philbin and Mike Sherman firmly believe that Tannehill can be the future of the franchise and that he will live up to his potential. Is it a reach? Of course it's a reach, but when's the last time we've seen the Dolphins organization take a risk in the draft. Without further ado, here is an in-depth look at Ryan Tannehill by the numbers.

Tannehill played high school football at Big Spring Highschool. He played 10 games at defensive back his sophomore season. As a junior, he passed for 1,410 yards and rushed for 822 at quarterback. He took his team to the playoffs as a senior, passing for 1,258 yards and rushing for another 617. He had to miss two games due to a separated shoulder in the second game of his senior year. He also posted three receptions for 62 yards and compiled a 39.2 punt average with a long of 84 yards as a senior. He received second-team District 4-4A honors for both his junior and senior seasons.

Tannehill continued to play receiver during the first six games of the 2010 season. Over those six games, he made 11 catches for 143 yards. He attempted 4 passes during the season opener.

In 2011, Tannehill started all 13 games (including the Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas) at quarterback for the Aggies. He threw for 3,744 yards and 29 touchdowns, with 15 interceptions. He completed 61.6% of his passes and posted a quarterback rating of 133.2. He also ran for 4 touchdowns.

Tannehill concluded his quarterback career at Texas A&M with a total of 5,450 passing yards and 42 touchdown passes

If you want my analysis of Tannehill pre-draft, click past the jump.

WILD CARDS: The Wild Cards in this post are defined as the players that would fit well in Miami’s system, but have a slim chance of landing with the Fins.

QB Texas A&M Ryan Tannehill: This past week, Mike Sherman had a little bit to say about his college Quarterback Ryan Tannehill. Here’s a tidbit in case you missed it: "Like all good quarterbacks he had great poise. Very confident in any system, west coast or not," Sherman said. "Any quarterback has to be confident in his own skin and believe in himself. They always say a great quarterback makes those around him better. I thought [Brett] Favre did that. I think Aaron Rodgers does that. I think Tannehill does that as well." Let’s take a look at what exactly Sherman sees in Tannehill.

THE GOOD: Ryan Tannehill’s game and body type exemplifies the type of player suitable for the West Coast Offense. The WCO comes with four specific characteristics needed from the Quarterback:

1. Accuracy: Tannehill has tremendous accuracy in the short passing game. He delivers the ball in time, right on the numbers. When on the run, his accuracy stays the same. He is able to get enough zip on the ball when rolling out, which makes him a big threat to opposing defenses. Like Aaron Rodgers, Ryan Tannehill is able to make the fade passes to the outside and hit receivers in stride. Now you can see why Sherman made the comparison to Rodgers.
2. Decision Making: (In "THE BAD")
3. Mobility: Tannehill’s mobility for his size is excellent. Because of the fact that he used to be a top receiver, he was able to transition that part of his game to the Quarterback position. This is another factor that makes him desirable to Dolfans.
4. Strength: Ryan’s strength is that of an NFL QB. He has the ability to zip the ball into tight spaces and throw the long ball on the run.

THE BAD: Tannehill’s decision making certainly needs work. Too often he throws to receivers with defenders nearby resulting in a big hit. Also, he’s quite pressure sensitive; he will sense as if he’s in danger and throw the ball into terrible spots resulting in interceptions. Lastly, his setup and release of the ball is quite inconsistent. Sometimes he’ll throw a dart with a short arm motion similar to Brett Favre, while other times he takes the ball back too much and side-arms a throw like Tim Tebow. This is one area of his game that he must fix in order to take the next step as an NFL QB.