MIRAMAR, Fla. — Come Sunday afternoon, Ryan Tannehill will already have something on Dan Marino.
Tannehill will become the first Miami Dolphins rookie quarterback to start an opener. Marino didn’t get the call until the sixth game of his rookie season in 1983, which actually didn’t sit too well with him.
“My expectations were to come in and start right away,’’ Marino said on Tuesday.
It still turned out OK for Marino, who became a Hall of Famer. And now Marino, who is an analyst for CBS’ The NFL Today but still calls himself a Dolphins fan, is hoping it turns well for Tannehill, who will get the call at Houston.
“There’s a lot of pressure on him, but (the Dolphins are) kind of in a rebuilding phase right now,’’ said Marino, who made an appearance at a South Florida sports bar. “I like the idea of starting a young quarterback. If it doesn’t go perfect, you can always go back to a veteran. So I like the idea of (Dolphins coach) Joe Philbin putting in a rookie right away.’’
Tannehill won the job over incumbent Matt Moore after another veteran, David Garrard, hurt his knee and missed the entire preseason. Garrard had been No. 1 on the depth chart early in training camp.
Garrard was released Tuesday while Moore is still around. But the job is Tannehill’s to lose.
“I haven’t seen him in person and sometimes you have to see a guy throw balls in person,’’ Marino said of the 6-foot-4 Tannehill. “But what I understand, he can make all the throws. He’s a tall guy. I’ve met him. I like guys who are bigger because you’ve got to see over the line …. I’ve seen him run around pretty good. He made some plays (in the preseason) running …. They wouldn’t have picked him eighth if they didn’t think he was going to be a big-time player in the league.’’
Marino was chosen No. 27 but still figured he would be a big-time player immediately. However, when he showed up in Miami, the Dolphins were coming off a Super Bowl loss to Washington and coach Don Shula initially elected to stick with incumbent David Woodley.
“(Woodley) had some history there where he’d been a starter,’’ Marino said. “Coach Shula told me from the beginning, ‘I want you to come in there and work as if you’re going to be the starting quarterback. That could be Week 1, it could be Week 10 or maybe next year.' "
It turned out to be Week 6. After the offense faltered early in the season, Marino got the call Oct. 9, 1983, at home against Buffalo. The Dolphins lost 38-35 in overtime, but Marino threw for 322 yards and three touchdowns, and a legend had been unleashed.
Now, it will be seen what happens with Tannehill, the 17th different quarterback to start for the Dolphins since Marino retired after the 1999 season. It’s possible Tannehill could lose some confidence being thrown in right away but Marino says that’s worth the risk.
“That could be a possibility,’’ Marino said. “But if he’s going to be a big-time player in this league, you got to have the confidence and the ability to shake it off. You got to have a short memory.’’
Marino did. He did have two interceptions in losing his first game as a starter. But he came back the next week to throw three touchdowns and no interceptions in a 32-14 win at the New York Jets.
Now, it’s Tannehill’s turn to show what he can do as a rookie. And with Marino in the studio for Sunday’s CBS-televised game, he will be critiquing him plenty.
Chris Tomasson can be reached at christomasson@hotmail.com or on Twitter @christomasson
