Joe Philbin went through it for three-plus seasons. Now its Adam Gases turn.
Call it the Three Stages of (Ryan) Tannehill.
First comes the honeymoon phase. You see Tannehill's size (6-4, 216 pounds), arm strength, athletic ability and his quick motion, and dream about the future and all that as a coach you can accomplish with him. No huddle. Zone read. Play-action bombs. It all seems possible.
In the second stage, the actual games start and things just dont work out as you envisioned. Something is missing, and the offense flounders. You say to yourself, Ryan has all these gifts, it cant be him. So you find excuses on filmstruggles by the offensive line, inconsistent drops from the receivers. We need to play better around him, its not all Ryans fault, hes our guy, you finally declare.
The third stage is when reality sets in: Tannehill, for all his talents, just doesnt have the instincts for the position. If they ever come, it will be later in his career like a Rich Gannon. But you wont be around to see it.