Is Gase leading target for coach?

Tannenbaum has track record with rookie coaches

Here’s what we know about Dolphins executive vice president of football operations Mike Tannenbaum and coaches: He gave Rex Ryan his head-coaching start with the New York Jets. He was agent to Steve Kerr and David Blatt, who were never NBA coaches before taking teams to the NBA Finals last year.

So he recognizes young, up-and-coming coaching talent. Tannenbaum also sat across from a table at Jimmy Johnson’s restaurant in the Keys last summer and took 2 1⁄2 hours worth of notes. The legendary coach reinforced a Tannenbaum idea:

“Look for intelligence, passion and a guy willing to work his ass off,” he said.

Parallel head-coaching experience, Jimmy said, wasn’t a top need, because, “If you’re looking for longevity and not a quick fix, the learning curve is short with those other qualities.”

The Dolphins are interested in talking with Adam Gase, the Chicago Bears’ 37-year-old offensive coordinator, for their head coaching job, a source confirmed, as first reported by Fox Sports.

Talking is not wanting, and wanting is not closing the deal, so we’ll see where this goes. Tannenbaum surely has others

on his list. But Gase has the new-car smell of a young and rising football mind who got several interviews last winter and will draw even more interest starting Sunday afternoon when seasons start ending.

The Dolphins hope to find their new coach within the next week, and the past decade of franchise errors won’t deter Tannenbaum from hiring a guy who has never been a head coach. In fact, much of his past shouts that’s the preference, if the right guy is there.

Joe Philbin and Cam Cameron didn’t know how to lead a team when they were first-time head coaches with the Dolphins. Tony Sparano, by-far best of the Dolphins’ first-time coaches of late, still had issues and an extended learning curve.

Of course, nothing is certain, as Jeff Fisher shows. He was the loud second-guess when Philbin was hired. In four seasons at St. Louis, Fisher hasn’t won more than seven games with coaching and personnel control. Who’s on that train now?

Plus, the Dolphins problems with first-time hires aren’t supported by an NFL-wide model. The best coaching success stories of late are Todd Bowles, who has turned around the Jets in his first season as a head coach, and Bruce Arians, who has taken Arizona to double-digit wins his first three years.

So is Gase that guy? Who knows? It’s too early to know Tannenbaum’s exact intentions, much less to know what Gase wants. And there are serious questions: Who would run his defense? What would his full staff look like? These can make or kill his candidacy.

Cleveland and Philadelphia also may be in the market for him and have the same niche need he can deliver: Teams wondering what they have at quarterback. Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill took a disheartening step back this year. It wasn’t just him. The support around him struggled, compounding his problems. Gase’s strength is quarterbacks, though that comes with an asterisk.

Gase, you see, popped up on the national radar while managing Tim Tebow to a playoff win with Denver. He then worked with quarterback Peyton Manning. Manning is the asterisk here, because he’s a Hall of Fame talent who made a lot of coaches look good until age caught up to him this season.

Bears quarterback Jay Cutler has had an uptick in most numbers (and what would be a career-low eight interceptions) under Gase this season. But Chicago is also 20th in the league in scoring. So who exactly is Gase?

Any hire is a leap of faith on some level. Tannenbaum hired Ryan and went to two AFC Championship games with him. He also hired first-time coach Eric Mangini before that and had to fire him.

In other words, this hire isn’t just about what a coach knows. It’s what Tannenbaum has learned. His background shows he’s not afraid to give first-time guys a chance. It shows, again, that’s his preference.

Gase fits that model. Others do, too. We’ll see where this goes. Tannenbaum takes the stage starting at 4 p.m. Sunday when the Dolphins season ends. And, soon, the coach he decides on will take the stage beside him.

This hire isn’t just about what a coach knows. It’s what Tannenbaum has learned.