25/25/25 No. 19: Ryan Tannehill
- J.C. Reeves
- 4 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Love him or hate him, Ryan Tannehill etched his name into Dolphins history during his six-season, seven-year tenure with the team.
During his time in Miami, Tannehill passed for 20,434 yards and 123 touchdowns on 1,829 completions in 2,911 attempts — all ranking third in franchise history.
Drafted No. 8 overall in the 2012 NFL Draft, Tannehill became the first Dolphins quarterback to surpass 4,000 passing yards in a season since Dan Marino in 1994. In 2014, the Texas A&M product narrowly eclipsed the mark with 4,045 yards and a then-career-high 27 touchdowns. He did it again in 2015, throwing for 4,208 yards and 24 scores.
In 2016, during the Dolphins’ best season since 2008, Tannehill partially tore his ACL after taking a hit from Arizona Cardinals defensive tackle Calais Campbell. (Campbell later played a solid season for Miami in 2024 at age 38.) Backup Matt Moore stepped in and helped lead the team to a playoff berth, which ended with a Wild Card loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Tannehill opted against surgery and instead underwent stem-cell therapy to rehab his knee. But during a non-contact practice on Aug. 3, 2017, his ACL fully tore, requiring surgery and sidelining him for the entire season. Miami signed the recently retired Jay Cutler to take over at quarterback.
Tannehill returned in 2018 and started 11 games, including the Dec. 9 matchup against the New England Patriots that ended with the Miracle in Miami — Gronkowski still doesn’t have the angle. He missed five games that year due to a right shoulder injury.
In early 2019, the Dolphins traded Tannehill and a sixth-round pick to the Tennessee Titans in exchange for a 2020 fourth-round pick and a 2019 seventh-rounder. He enjoyed a pair of strong seasons in Tennessee, particularly in 2020 and 2021, when the Titans finished 11-5 and 12-5, respectively. Tannehill set a career high with 33 touchdown passes in 2020.
While Tannehill remained a polarizing figure among Dolphins fans, his impact on the franchise during the mid-2010s was undeniable — even as the team continued to hover around mediocrity. For a decade defined by quarterback instability in Miami, Tannehill stood out — not as Marino’s successor, but as the best the franchise had since.
Who will come in at No. 18 on the 25/25/25 rankings? Check back tomorrow with Show-Me Fins.
Ryan Tannehill
QB, 6-4, 217, Texas A&M, drafted in 2012 (1st round, 8th overall)
History w/ Miami: 6 seasons (2012-2018); 88 games played; 88 starts
Other playing history: 11 total seasons (2012-2023); Tennessee (2019-2023)
Overall career stats: 34,881 PASS YDS, 216 TD, 115 INT, 4,764 ATT, 3,063 COMP, 7.3 YPA, 225 YPG, 64.3%; 2,103 RUSH YDS, 440 ATT, 27 TD
Stats w/ Miami: 20,434 PASS YDS (No. 3), 123 TD (No. 3), 75 INT (No. 3), 2,911 ATT (No. 3), 1,829 COMP (No. 3), 7 YPA, 232.2 YPG, 62.8%; 1,210 RUSH YDS, 248 ATT, 6 TD
Single-season career highs: 4,208 PASS YDS (2015), 33 TD (2020 — w/ Tennessee), 17 INT (2013), 590 ATT (2014), 392 COMP (2014), 9.6 YPA (2019 — w/ Tennessee — Led NFL), 263 YPG (2015), 70.3% (2019 — w/ Tennessee); 311 RUSH YDS (2014), 56 ATT (2014), 7 TD (2020, 2021 — w/ Tennessee)
Single-season highs w/ Miami: 4,208 PASS YDS (2015), 27 TD (2014), 17 INT (2013), 590 ATT (2014), 392 COMP (2014), 7.7 YPA (2016), 263 YPG (2015), 67.1% (2016); 311 RUSH YDS (2014), 56 ATT (2014), 2 TD (2012)
Awards: 1x Pro Bowl (2019 — w/ Tennessee), AP Comeback Player of the Year (2019 — w/ Tennessee)
Previous 25/25/25 entries
No. 24: Chris Chambers