Posted in: NFL, Sports | Tagged: Colin Kaepernick, entertainment, Jay Cutler, Miami Dolphins, nfl, Ryan Tannehill, sports

With Ryan Tannehill Hurt, What Do The Miami Dolphins Do At Quarterback?

The 2017 season for the Miami Dolphins has already taken a hit. Starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill went down with a knee injury on a non-contact play during training camp yesterday. Tannehill suffered an injury to his ACL last year but decided against surgery, giving the injury what was believed to be enough time to heal on it's own. The fact he went down without being hit brings that decision into question.

An MRI on the knee was reported to show no structural damage, at least that was at first. Now, the MRI is being shown to orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews and a decision will be made on whether Tannehill needs surgery or rehab. Either way, the he's going to be shutdown for a while and the team needs to look at their options. This is quite disappointing for the Dolphins and their fans as Tannehill showed a lot of improvement under head coach Adam Gase and the season was looking promising.

First on their list is their back up quarterback Matt Moore. Matt has decent arm strength, can throw most of the pro level passes but has been given the chance to be the guy both in Carolina earlier in his career and a few years back in Miami, and he couldn't elevate his game. He is what you want from a back-up, a guy who can fill in for a couple games and keep you competitive. He's not a good answer as the starter unless Gase just thinks Moore is perfect for his system.

Option two that has been talked about is Colin Kaepernick. The quarterback's play has diminished over the last few years since his trip to the Super Bowl and he stirred up some controversy when he refused to stand for the National Anthem. Many believe it's the ladder that has kept him from signing on to a team. Recent reports suggest that both the coach and general manager of the Baltimore Ravens have wanted to sign Kaepernick since Joe Flacco hurt his back, but the owner is blocking that. The Ravens have denied that report, but have not signed the player nor anyone else to fill in while Flacco is out.

The owner of the Dolphins supported the players on his team who decided to join Kaepernick in his protest, so that wouldn't be an issue of him joining the team. The problem comes form a difference stance Kaepernick took, showing up to a press conference with a shirt showing Malcolm X and Fidel Castro and the quote "Great minds think alike". Miami is the home of a large Cuban community and they don't take kindly to any pro-Castro mentions.

Another interesting choice would be to signed Jay Cutler, who recently signed on to do color commentary for Fox. His contract does allow him an out if it is to return to the NFL as a starter. Cutler would be interested in reuniting with Gase who lead him to one of his best years in the NFL. Word is that Cutler has reached out to the team.

Other options would be to trade for someone like Brock Osweiler from Cleveland or Jimmy Garoppolo from New England. Osweiler didn't show he was worth trading for and Garoppolo is a potential franchise quarterback, so if you trade for him and what New England would want, you are basically giving up on Tannehill. There are a few other back-ups around the league, but few are an improvement over what they already have in Moore.

The last option could be Robert Griffin III, but no one is really talking about giving him another chance in the NFL.

I think Miami will wait to see the MRI and if Tannehill can come back shortly, they may go with Moore. If it will be later in the season, then I think they will sign Kaepernick, but if he's done for the year then I'd expect to see Cutler get the call.

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