Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill is back on the field after missing the end of the 2016 season and all of last season, which adds up to 19 months away from the game and big questions about whether he can be the player the Dolphins need him to be.
Tannehill said that he accepts that and loves “feeling that responsibility” when he’s on the field. He also feels that his extended stay on the shelf because of knee problems has left him better equipped for the job than he was before getting hurt in 2016.
“Yeah, I would say I’ve grown a lot as a leader,” Tannehill said, via the Miami Herald. “I’ve grown a lot as a person just because of the adversity that I’ve faced -- like I said, being able to take a step back and watch from a different perspective, taking in all that information, filing it away, writing things down. I’ve been going back and gone over my notes of things that hit me over the head the past [19] months or whatever it may be. I’ve just built on that. It’s an experience that while I wouldn’t want it to happen that way, it’s going to be invaluable for me moving forward.”
With David Fales and Brock Osweiler as the other quarterback options in Miami, there probably won’t be much hope for success in Miami should Tannehill get hurt again or struggle in his return to game action. That makes for a lot of pressure for a quarterback, but there’s nothing for Tannehill to do but embrace the chance to answer questions about his fitness for the job once and for all.