BY SEAN DONOVAN
Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald shot down the report, but Sports Illustrated's Peter King backed it.
Ross, who closely monitors his team's public image, is perhaps motivated by a crisis in confidence from his fanbase and a crisis in his season ticket sales. Recent failures to sign big-name free agents and coaches have disillusioned the fans and further tarnished his team's suffering brand. Ross desperately wants to bring hope, and ultimately winning, to the team he purchased in 2008.
Season ticket sales have sunk down to 30,000 in a stadium that holds 75,000. The franchise needs a shot in the arm to excite the fans, and apparently Ross thinks Tannehill is the guy to do that. Tannehill would be the first quarterback drafted by the Dolphins in the first round since Miami selected Dan Marino in 1983. Marino, of course, had a legendary career that cast a shadow over the Dolphins that still looms to this day. Sixteen different quarterbacks have started games for the Dolphins since Marino retired following the 1999 season.
Tannehill's stock soared as the draft process moved along, and the former Aggie has become the trendy choice for a team in dire need of a quarterback.
The Dolphins coaching staff has an advantage that no other team has when it comes to Tannehill. New offensive coordinator Mike Sherman was the head coach at Texas A&M while Tannehill played there, and it should be trusted that the Dolphins, as much as anybody, know what kind of prospect he really is. It would be interesting to see what kind of pressure Ross would place on his front office to make certain moves for non-football reasons.
Follow Sean @seanldonovanRoss, who closely monitors his team's public image, is perhaps motivated by a crisis in confidence from his fanbase and a crisis in his season ticket sales. Recent failures to sign big-name free agents and coaches have disillusioned the fans and further tarnished his team's suffering brand. Ross desperately wants to bring hope, and ultimately winning, to the team he purchased in 2008.
Season ticket sales have sunk down to 30,000 in a stadium that holds 75,000. The franchise needs a shot in the arm to excite the fans, and apparently Ross thinks Tannehill is the guy to do that. Tannehill would be the first quarterback drafted by the Dolphins in the first round since Miami selected Dan Marino in 1983. Marino, of course, had a legendary career that cast a shadow over the Dolphins that still looms to this day. Sixteen different quarterbacks have started games for the Dolphins since Marino retired following the 1999 season.
Tannehill's stock soared as the draft process moved along, and the former Aggie has become the trendy choice for a team in dire need of a quarterback.
The Dolphins coaching staff has an advantage that no other team has when it comes to Tannehill. New offensive coordinator Mike Sherman was the head coach at Texas A&M while Tannehill played there, and it should be trusted that the Dolphins, as much as anybody, know what kind of prospect he really is. It would be interesting to see what kind of pressure Ross would place on his front office to make certain moves for non-football reasons.
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