Former Miami Dolphins wide receiver Mike Wallace blamed quarterback Ryan Tannehill’s based struggles on the “toxic a– program” of his old team.
One of the best stories of the 2019 season has been the resurgence of Tennessee Titans quarterback, Ryan Tannehill.
Since being named the starter in Week 7, Tannehill has compiled a 9-3 record that has not only helped the Titans get to the playoffs, but all the way to the AFC Championship Game also after a win over the AFC’s No. 1 seed, the Baltimore Ravens, on Saturday night.
While Tannehill’s numbers haven’t exactly been gaudy (he has under 100 yards passing in each of the Titans’ two postseason wins), he’s made the big plays necessary to help his team win.
Adding to that, Tannehill played the best football of his career during a 7-3 stretch in the last 10 games of the regular season, and he finished No. 1 in the NFL in passer rating and No. 3 in completion percentage.
His performance in 2019 has left many to wonder: what went wrong with Tannehill in Miami?
In the midst of the Titans’ domination of the Ravens in the Divisional Round, former Dolphins wide receiver Mike Wallace, who spent two seasons in Miami and was a teammate of Tannehill’s for both of them, blamed the Dolphins’ “toxic ass program” on his past struggles.
@ryantannehill1 it wasn’t u bro it was that toxic ass program lol
— Mike Wallace (@Wallace17_daKid) January 12, 2020
Miami drafted Tannehill with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, and while he had some good moments and seasons there, he never really panned out the way the Dolphins had hoped. He was then traded to the Titans after the 2018 season.
Now, it isn’t clear if Wallace is talking about the Dolphins organization in general, or one specific head coach.
During the two years Wallace was with the Dolphins (2013 and 2014), he and Tannehill played under head coach Joe Philbin together. After Philbin, Tannehill also played under head coach Adam Gase, who is now the lead man of the New York Jets, but Wallace had already departed.
Blame it on who or what you want, but the version of Tannehill we’ve seen this season is a far cry from what we saw with the Dolphins, and he has earned the right to be the Titans’ franchise quarterback for at least the next few years to come.