NFL teams
James Walker, ESPN Staff Writer 9y

Has Dolphins QB Ryan Tannehill turned the corner?

DAVIE, Fla. -- Although it hasn't been publicized much on a national level, Ryan Tannehill of the Miami Dolphins has quietly been one of the hottest quarterbacks in the NFL during the past three weeks.

Tannehill has been lights out in 10 of his past 12 quarters, with the exception being the first half in a Week 6 loss to the Green Bay Packers.

 The Dolphins are 2-1 in that stretch and 3-3 overall heading into Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-6). Tannehill appears to be finding his groove at the right time. This is an important part of the season where we will find out if Miami is a contender or pretender this season.

“It’s a natural progression, right?” Tannehill said this week. “As a play-caller, as an offense, as you get in the flow of things, you figure out the things that your team is good at, that your players are good at, and you try to highlight those things. You can’t only do those things because you have to be balanced. But I think [offensive coordinator] Bill [Lazor] has done a great job of game-planning, and then when the games come around, calling great games.”

Tannehill’s numbers are up across the board during his three-game run. He is completing 72.3 percent of his passes in that stretch and making fewer mistakes. Tannehill also is using his legs more and produced runs of 40 and 30 yards in his past two games.

Tannehill’s recent play has fueled newfound optimism that he could potentially develop into Miami’s long-term solution at quarterback. Just before this three-game run, there was speculation that Tannehill was in danger of being benched.

Miami head coach Joe Philbin refused to name a starting quarterback before the Week 4 game against the Oakland Raiders. That fueled questions of whether Tannehill needed to play better quickly or risk being benched. From that point, Tannehill has played some of the best football of his career.

“I’m just glad we’re playing good football, myself and the team,” a happy Tannehill said. “You want to improve every week, and you know I think we’ve done that. Sometimes it’s been obvious, sometimes not so obvious. But I think we’re improving consistently, and that’s what you want is guys getting more comfortable on the field, myself included and things start clicking.”

The next step for Tannehill is to prove his hot streak isn't just a short-term solution. It is easier for NFL quarterbacks to get hot, but franchise quarterbacks are able to consistently stay hot.

Tannehill has 10 more games to get the Dolphins in the postseason and prove he is Miami's long-term answer under center. A good game against the lowly Jaguars Sunday would be another step in the right direction for Tannehill's development.

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