The Dolphins are in a better position than any team to know whether Matt Flynn is worth franchise quarterback money.
They are also in a better position than any team to know whether Texas A&M product Ryan Tannehill is a worth high draft pick in April. Dolphins offensive coordinator Mike Sherman speaks highly of his former pupil.
“Like all good quarterbacks he had great poise. Very confident in any system, west coast or not,” Sherman said via Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. “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.”
Sherman and Tannehill didn’t make the Aggies enough better last year or Sherman wouldn’t have been fired. A former college receiver, Tannehill is a good fit for a West Coast offense at quarterback.
Tannehill’s tools and intangibles will likely make him a first round pick and the No. 3 quarterback in this class. Like Christian Ponder and Jake Locker last year, we expect Tannehill to get pushed up high in the draft because so many teams need quarterbacks.
One of those teams -- Miami -- might tell us what they are thinking about Tannehill in free agency. If they sign Flynn or Peyton Manning, it’s hard to imagine them taking Tannehill.
If the Dolphins only sign a second-tier player at quarterback, perhaps Sherman has convinced the organization that Tannehill is ready to lead an organization.