Former Dolphins 4,000-Yard Quarterback Predicted to Land With Bears

Getty Ryan Tannehill warming up.

Former Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill is still on the market, searching for his new team for his age 36 season. Zack Cook of Sports Grid predicts Tannehill to sign with the Chicago Bears, writing how he can be a valuable veteran to the young quarterback the Bears are expected to draft.

“Although Ryan Tannehill is no longer at the point of his career where he’s a bonafide starting quarterback, he can still present value to an NFL team in 2024. Backup quarterbacks have value, and Tannehill should present that for a team with a young signal-caller.”

Tannehill has dealt with injuries in his career, but threw for over 4,000 yards in two seasons for the Dolphins. During his time with the Tennessee Titans, Tannehill threw for over 3,700 yards in two of his five seasons.

Tannehill Viewed as Best Free Agent Quarterback Remaining

The former Miami Dolphins quarterback is viewed as the top remaining option at his position, according to Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports.

“The best of the free agent quarterbacks remaining, Tannehill is likely awaiting an opportunity compete for a starting job given his resume. Tannehill has 151 career starts in his 12-year career (81-70 record), throwing for 34,881 yards and 216 touchdowns with a 91.2 rating.

“The 35-year-old Tannehill likely will have to wait until after the draft to sign with a team, as his veteran presence as a starter and a backup makes a quarterback room better. Tannehill can still compete for a starting job, even after his benching in Tennessee last season.”

In 2021, the last time Tannehill played more than 12 games, he threw for 3,734 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions.

The Chicago Bears likely wouldn’t give him an opportunity to win a starting job with the expectation of them drafting Caleb Williams, but Kerr also views him as a veteran who can be a valuable backup, something the Bears could be interested in.

How Tannehill Would Help the Bears

Tannehill would be able to step in at any moment and give the Chicago Bears a servicable option. At the very least, he’d give the Bears a grown up in the quarterback room, which Leigh Oleszczak of Titan Sized believes is valuable for the Bears. 

In his March 27 article about Tannehill being a bargain free agent option for three teams, he list the Bears as an option.

“With the Bears owning the number one pick and likely taking Caleb Williams with that pick, they could use a true veteran quarterback to help mentor Williams as he enters year 1 of his NFL career. Whether the Bears plan to start Williams right out of the gates or not remains to be seen but if they signed Tannehill, he could either start and mentor Williams or be a solid backup for the rookie signal-caller while still mentoring him.

“We’ve seen in the past how veteran quarterbacks mentoring rookies can do wonders for their career (just look at Alex Smith and Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City) so if the Bears wanted to try and replicate that, signing Tannehill could make sense here.”

The former Miami Dolphins first-round pick backed up Will Levis in 2023 and struggled in his new role.

“It hits hard,” Tannehill said Wednesday to Turron Davenport of ESPN.

“I’ve never been in this situation before, never a situation that anyone wants to be in, but it’s a situation I’m in.”

However, he was willing to help Levis with any questions he had, a promising sign for the Bears or other teams looking for a backup quarterback.

“I’m going to be here to answer any questions he has and try to help him out along the way,” the ex-Dolphins quarterback said of working with Levis.