Miami Dolphins Owner Lobbying For Ryan Tannehill

Published: 23rd Apr 12 11:02 am
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by Max Luckan
NFL Columnist
Miami Dolphins Owner Lobbying For Ryan Tannehill
Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

On Sunday night, ProFootballTalk reported that Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross was “pushing for Ryan Tannehill.” However, respected beat writer Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald quickly followed up saying that a “very, very, very highly placed source within the Dolphins organization” disputed the ProFootballTalk report, saying that it is not true.

It looks like things have cleared up on Monday morning. Sports Illustrated’s Peter King wrote in his Monday Morning QB column that ProFootballTalk was “right on” and that the report was accurate, meaning it appears Stephen Ross is pushing for Ryan Tannehill at number eight overall.

Now I don’t want to start any controversy, but it’s interesting that there are two conflicting reports. Also, it’s rare that Armando Salguero, who has covered the Dolphins for 22 years, is wrong. I don’t know who Salguero e-mailed, but it seems to be that many top officials in the Dolphins organization are not on the same page. This, of course, can be extremely dangerous around draft time because you want everyone to be thinking the same things. I also don’t know who Mike Florio talked to in the organization, but King explicitly stated that he got a call Monday morning confirming ProFootballTalk’s Sunday evening report.

Tannehill is seen as the third best quarterback in the draft by many, and now that this report is out, it seems like Jeff Ireland will have to select Tannehill. Whether he’s a franchise quarterback remains to be seen of course, but the pressure is now on Ireland to please the fans, and build a winning football team. Otherwise, his days as general manager in Miami might be limited.

The fact that the Dolphins disputed the Sunday report may indicate frustration and disarray at the higher levels in the organization. Salguero e-mailed a high-ranking source within the organization, who denied ProFootballTalk’s report in “colorful language,” which shows that the front office is currently a mess and many officials apparently aren’t on the same page.

Miami will have to figure this out somehow and come to some kind of consensus. Otherwise, I see a storm brewing down in South Beach.

You can follow Max Luckan on Twitter @MaxLuckan

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