Brock Osweiler Leads Biggest Win Of 2018… But Now What?

Brock Osweiler proved to be able to manage the game under pressure
Brock Osweiler proved to be able to manage the game under great pressure.

Brock Osweiler will play in the next two games… at least.

The Dolphins are coming off a gritty performance where they amazingly outlasted the Chicago Bears in overtime…

… almost as gritty was the performance of backup Quarterback Brock Osweiler.

Despite the big win and the 4-2 record, the future of this season is becoming blurry with Ryan Tannehill’s mysterious strained throwing shoulder. The real concern is the lack of improvement in the injury. They have shut Tannehill down hoping his shoulder improves… keyword HOPE.

Tannehill and the Dolphins are in a dicey situation

Now the Dolphins are in a holding pattern with Tannehill…again. By all indications, he won’t be available until Week 9—at the least. Given his uneven performance so far, his extended absence, and his large price tag in 2019, the Dolphins are in a very sticky situation now and beyond.

The Dolphins need to be careful with this injury because it’s his throwing shoulder. Tannehill’s is Miami’s most talented option at QB. But it’s frustrating that again Tannehill’ ‘big reveal’ as a QB is obscured by another ‘situation’. One thing that’s certain: For whatever reason, Tannehill’s performance is always surrounded by inconsistency. Will it ever end?

Tannehill is anchored to the Dolphins due to his extension in the offseason

The Dolphins brass (and fans) should consider Andrew Luck. He suffered a similar injury and was lost for over a year. We should also remember that like Tannehill’s knee injury. A sprain of this magnitude is, in reality, a minor tear. Luck played through a torn labrum for a year and a half before finally having season-ending surgery. How close would Tannehill find himself to Luck’ predicament with one more unlucky hit?

If Tannehill is injured to an equivalent magnitude, then Miami couldn’t even cut him if they wanted in 2019.

This worst-case scenario would force the Phins to eat $26 million without even a backup to show for it. That would be roughly 8% of the 2019 CAP wasted.

Here we are in Brocktober… What now?

Sure, the Dolphins once again had some bad penalties and turned over the ball multiple times. However, they showed great resilience…. and came away with a victory.

The most shocking part was the Quarterback position came up big when they got down by 11. The key was the position didn’t have an implosion. 

Let’s keep things in perspective though: While Brock proved to be cool under fire and managed the game well, Albert Wilson padded his stats. Nearly a third of Brock’s 380 yards passing came from two of Wilson’s receptions…

… and in case you missed it, in those two receptions, Wilson did all the work.

Also, the Bears were preparing all week to face Tannehill and were thrown a monkey wrench when they faced Osweiler instead. So any talk of Brock replacing Tannehill long-term or being a better option should be put aside until we see the next two weeks.

Brock must prove far superior in poise to Tannehill to even be considered a long-term solution

Brock has an inferior arm and mobility to Tannehill… but if he could show excellent poise, then maybe we have something. But anything beyond a backup role isn’t a great bet at this point. Brock will get every opportunity to prove otherwise, of course.

Even at 4-2, the Dolphins are only getting a 20% chance of even making the playoffs from sports betting software. Should Brock take 2 of 3… or heaven forbid 3 of 3, at least a tough choice of who should start will be a good one.

I’ll take wrestling with that quandary any day of the week… but let’s hold our horses and see if it even comes to that.

What are the rest of the Miami Dolphins News fans’ thoughts about the Dolphins’ current hopes for the rest of the season?

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2 comments

  • Van

    Let’s see, Tannehill is brittle. He has been sacked over 100 times during is 7-year career. He will make about $18 million next year. He has to go! The Sun sentinel all but said Tannehill needs another operation. This time it’s his shoulder. Gase is applying his poor judgement to this scenario as those Morons did when Tannehill’s knee was injured. Forget the witch doctor and get the guy into surgery.

    Osweiler benefited from a strong running game last week. In addition, our defense played well and the bears turned the ball over too. If our old kicker had not choked, we would have lost the game. Osweiler would be a goat rather than a hero. The O-line protected Osweiler very well too. I hope this week is a repeat of last week.

    Our I/R list is long. We have key players out, trying to return and just plain healing! Detroit is probably healthier than we are. The lions at home should be a win!

    • admin

      Tannehill is on the books for 26.6, Van…. even worse. https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/miami-dolphins/cap/2019/

      I think they’ll do better this week… at least I hope. Phins can’t win like this every week. They need to be good enough to put a couple of teams away early. This should be one of them. I’m not a fan of Osweiler, but he could be okay if he doesn’t make the big mistake like Tannehill. Speaking of which, he is soooo frustrating as a player. I’ve all but lost faith in him… not because of his skill, but because of his mental mistakes. He took a beating for a long time and stayed healthy, but now seems to be catching a load of injuries.

      They need this win tomorrow because some tough ones are coming… will be an interesting watch.