We may finally have the real story behind that London-week practice fiasco that seemed to so clearly encapsulate all that has gone wrong for the Miami Dolphins and quarterback Ryan Tannehill this NFL season. It was reported earlier this week that Tannehill had been intercepted by a couple of practice squadders during Dolphins practice in the days leading up to Miami's early Sunday game against the New York Jets at Wembley Stadium. Per the report, Tannehill did not respond well to the picks, supposedly suggesting the players enjoy their practice trophy and meager paychecks. Albert Breer of NFL.com believes he's got the real story.
"The Dolphins were in drills where defensive players are to shadow offensive guys, but not make plays on the ball. So Tannehill threw one up, missed his target, and rookie DB Tony Lippett picked it off," Breer reports. "Tannehill got after Lippett. Some defensive guys took exception with that. On the next play, linebacker Chris McCain ran through a 'mock' cut block and broke up a pass. Tannehill's temper flared. McCain responded by saying that someone compensated at Tannehill's level should just get the ball there. And from there, defensive players were going after the ball."
This week, Tannehill admitted to becoming "upset" and saying something about a "scout team or trophy," while speaking with James Walker of ESPN, but denied ever belittling the players' paychecks. He also referred to the initial report of his behavior "sickening" and "slanderous," per Chris Perkins of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Still, Tannehill told Walker that he knows his reaction during that practice was not what can be rightly expected out of a franchise quarterback in the NFL.
"Am I happy about everything I said? No. [Am I happy] the things went down the way they did? No. I hold myself to a higher standard than to take a shot at something like that," Tannehill said.
As Breer notes, it's not the end of the world for the Dolphins or Tannehill that this happened and the real story seems far less scandalous than what was initially reported. That being said, it's not a good sign that the team's de facto leader doesn't seem to garner the respect of the organization's defensive players. It's a tired refrain, but it's hard to imagine something like this occurring between Broncos players and Peyton Manning or Patriots players and Tom Brady.
Though, apparently if it does happen to Brady, his response is something quite different than Tannehill's was.
