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http://www.torontosun.com/2016/10/22/how-hitting-qb-tannehill-pays-off-for-dolphins-foes-and-more
Ryan Tannehill of the Miami Dolphins runs off the field during a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on October 16, 2016 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Wanna beat the Miami Dolphins? Just rattle Ryan Tannehill, early and often.
That’s been a widely held belief regarding the talented, athletic quarterback since his 2012 rookie season.
Here he is now, 70 starts and nearly four-and-a-half seasons after Miami drafted him No. 8 overall, and Dolphins fans still are waiting for Tannehill to justify the pick. He’s been good at times, horrible at others, but mostly just Ok as he struggles, year after year, behind bad offensive lines.
Tannehill and the 2-4 Dolphins play host to the 4-2 Buffalo Bills on Sunday afternoon.
So much has been written about Tannnehill’s travails that I thought, for a fresh take, it might be worth taking a deep-dive into Miami’s statistical gamebooks since 2012, to test my five evolving theories about Tannehill’s struggles.
This week I did it, poring over stats from all 70 of the 28-year-old’s games. Some of my suppositions were supported by the findings. Others weren’t. To wit:
1. He generally seems to play poorly in first halves.
Production stats bear this out, efficiency stats not so much.
In each of his five seasons Tannehill has thrown more touchdown passes in the second half compared to the first. In total, 54 TDs and 30 interceptions after halftime, compared to 39 and 31 before.
And his passer rating after halftime? Higher in three of five years.
On the other hand, 2016 is the only season in which Tannehill’s completion percentage wasn’t higher before halftime. And in both 2013 and 2014 — arguably his best seasons — Tannehill’s passer rating was better and his yardage greater before halftime.
2. He seems to pad his passing stats in second halves, especially in big losses.
Actually, there were only a handful of glaring examples of this. Such as in Week 2 this year, when Tannehill threw for just 114 yards before halftime at New England, as Miami fell behind 24-3. Then, with the game out of hand, he completed 22-of-27 for 273 yards and two touchdowns. Miami lost 31-24.
On only four other occasions, however, has Tannehill thrown for 200-plus yards in a second half. In those games, Miami is 1-4 (.200).
In contrast, when Tannehill has thrown for 200-plus yards in a first half, Miami is 5-2 (.714).
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