Ex-Dolphins great defends Tannehill
Offense struggled last season, Taylor said
Jason Taylor and his fellow defenders carried the Miami Dolphins franchise during the post-Dan Marino era, so he knows a thing or two about lackluster quarterback play.
That’s why Taylor, who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2017 because of the dominant performances he gave Miami during his 15-year career, said he’s tired of listening to radio and television shows bash Ryan Tannehill and downplay his development.
“People can say whatever they want .... They want to replace him, and I’m like ‘Who are you going to get?’ Tannehill is one in the top half of the league in quarterbacks under center,” Taylor said. Tannehill is the Dolphins’ projected starter after missing the past 20 games because of a left knee injury, which put the teams in the hands of Jay Cutler in 2017.
“Sometimes people don’t understand what they have until it’s gone,” said Taylor, who spoke between sessions of Saturday’s Hyundai NFL Youth Camp, a charity event in which he led young attendees through a series of fundamental football skills and drills. “Last year with [Tannehill] not being there, see the struggles offensively, and as a team?
“Look back a couple years ago when they were in the play-
offs, and that progression he was on with [coach Adam] Gase,” Taylor said of Tannehill, who has a 37-40 record as Miami’s starting quarterback. “Hopefully he jumps right back on that path and continues to ascend.”
Taylor was referring to Tannehill’s 102.6 passer rating and 7-1 record in the eight games he played before the injury in a run that followed Miami’s 1-4 start in 2016.
Tannehill suffered a setback last training camp that forced him to have his anterior cruciate ligament surgically repaired. Under Cutler’s leadership, Miami’s offense became more stagnant than it had been under Tannehill.
The Dolphins finished the season ranked 28th in the NFL in points per game and produced a disappointing 6-10 record.
Taylor acknowledged that adjusting to the departure of three former Pro Bowl players in Ndamukong Suh (released by Miami), Jarvis Landry (traded) and Mike Pouncey (released) won’t be easy, and blamed that on the “business side of the NFL.” Taylor pointed out he’d been a casualty of it, too, during the Bill Parcells era.
However, Taylor said he likes a couple of the moves Miami made this offseason.
Taylor categorized Minkah Fitzpatrick, the Dolphins’ 2018 firstround pick, as the “steal of the draft” after watching the free safety play at the University of Alabama.
He said defensive end Robert Quinn, a two-time Pro Bowl player the Dolphins picked up in an offseason trade, will help Miami’s defense, and he is excited about the return of Raekwon McMillan, the Dolphins’ 2017 secondround pick who missed all of his rookie season because of a knee injury on his first NFL snap of the exhibition season.
But there’s one particular veteran Taylor feels Dolphins fans are sleeping on.
“I may sound crazy, but I like the Frank Gore addition,” Taylor said, referring to the 13-year veteran who is fifth on the NFL all-time rushing list with 14,026 yards, just 75 yards behind Curtis Martin, a Hall of Famer. “I know he’s got some mileage, but Frank is a pros’ pro. The way he works, the way he runs, he’ll bring a toughness and an attitude to this team that will help offensively. He’s a nasty runner. A nasty player when he’s out there competing.”