Ryan Tannehill – November 20, 2018
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Tuesday, November 20, 2018
QB Ryan Tannehill
(What was your reaction when Head Coach Adam Gase said you’re starting Sunday?) – “I’m excited. It’s been a long road to get back to where I’m at now. It was a tough five, six weeks of grinding, of frustration, of pain, of working through things to finally be healthy enough to play again. I’m really excited about where I’m at.”
(The timing is right for the decision? Before now would have been too soon?) – “Yes, 100 percent. We had a process we were going through this whole time. The last time I talked to you guys, I tried to make it happen sooner and it just wasn’t ready. I didn’t have the arm strength, didn’t get it there. I shut it back down and then over this past bye week, we were able to have a throwing program and progress all the way through. I feel really good. Obviously, I’m not quite 100 percent, but I feel confident and have made all the throws that I’m going to need to make over the course of a game.”
(When was it that you guys tried to go again and you had to shut it down? Was that before the bye week?) – “Yes. That was – I don’t even know … three weeks ago?”
(You had said before that it hurt every time you threw and you were kind of resigned at that being the reality of the rest of the season. Is that still the case?) – “I don’t know if it’s going to be the rest of the season. Obviously, I’m not completely pain-free now; but it’s at a tolerable rate and it’s something that I can deal with. It doesn’t affect any throws that I make.”
(Were you worried that you were going to have to adjust the motion that you had to do based on the injury?) – “That’s one thing we didn’t want to do. If you had to adjust, then you’re running into other problems whether it be elbow issues or different shoulder issues. That was something that we were kind of working through is making sure that I was able to have a consistent motion that fits the way I throw the ball in order to not run into other issues. You could probably figure out a way to get especially shorter throws there, without getting your arm all the way up or all the way back, whatever it may be. But as far as pushing the ball downfield, you’re not going to be able to make those throws and you’re going to cause yourself other problems as you move forward.”
(What would be the latest thing that a doctor or doctors told you about how healed it is?) – “It’s something that is purely off feel at this point. We got the MRI way back and saw what we saw. Four or five doctors were all on the same page of what it was and it’d just be kind of working through it and it’s purely off feel at this point. Everyone is confident that no further injury is going to be caused by playing through it at this point, with where it’s at in the healing process, and confident moving forward.”
(Two years ago when the knee happened, you guys were on a roll and the team went to the playoffs without you. Now you come back tied for the sixth seed and you have a chance to go on a roll and make the playoffs. What’s your mindset with that?) – “I’m excited. We have a lot of football in front of us. Obviously, one game at a time; but I firmly believe that if we take care of business, then we control our own destiny. It’s going to be a matter of going out each and every week and performing and winning football games.”
(Do you personally plan on playing as if you’ve never been away? Is that a realistic expectation for you in this game?) – “Yeah, I think so. I think you have to step in and play your game. I feel confident. I don’t feel like any aspect of my game is taken away as far as running the football, getting outside the pocket. I’ve been doing that throughout my rehab the past week, making throws outside the pocket. The doctors are confident it’s not something that taking a hit running the football or anything like that is going to affect the injury that I had. I feel completely confident that we can do all the things that we’ve done in this offense.”
(You mentioned when you talked to us first, that the type of way that you got hit before can be the only way that it could worsen. How do you kind of prevent from that being a possibility?) – “I mean it’s always a possibility. That’s kind of the nature of the game. There’s always a possibility of taking a freak hit or getting your arm grabbed or whatever it may be. You can’t really think about that or plan for it. You play fast, get the ball out on time, trust your tackles and move up in the pocket. Past that, you just have to play football.”
(How different is this offense now personnel-wise than the one for the Cincinnati game?) – “It’s a little bit different obviously, losing a couple guys. Jakeem (Grant) going down, Albert (Wilson) going down, DeVante (Parker) is dinged up. The offensive line has changed. It’s definitely some different personnel, but I think bringing in Brice (Butler) will help us outside. He had some big catches today at practice. He’s shown speed, long range. (Head) Coach (Adam) Gase showed the quarterbacks some highlights of his time in Dallas, so we kind of have to get a feel of what he brings to the table. Obviously what we saw out of practice today is a guy with a lot of range and speed, good hands. He made a couple of big catches away from his body. We’re excited about what he brings to the table. We have Kenny (Stills). Kenny is still out there. We’re going to have to get our tight ends involved and our running backs as well. We still have a lot of good skill players that we can get the ball to, just maybe different guys than it was in Cincinnati.”
(I believe it’s been nine quarters since the offense has scored a touchdown. How do you get that turned around and what needs to happen for it to turn around?) – “I just think we have to execute and do our job. I think it goes all the way around, everyone who steps on the field. If we just go out and do our job and execute, we’ll end up in the end zone. It has to be finishing through the end zone. I think the past few games, we’ve moved the ball well and then got to the red zone and kind of stalled out. That’s going to be huge for us, is to be able to finish through the end zone and get seven points on those drives and not come away with three.”
(I might be wrong but it feels like you’re a little tired of talking about your health. Is that fair?) – “I understand. That’s unfortunately the position we’re in. But yeah, I’m ready to put this behind me and move forward and start winning football games.”
(Every shoulder injury is different, and I have no idea of the details of Colts QB Andrew Luck’s shoulder, but it just occurred to me that he has bounced back from a shoulder injury to play really well. What have you noticed about that and is it sort of encouraging that this great quarterback also bounced back from a shoulder problem?) – “I haven’t followed it too closely. I know that they’re playing good football right now. I know he was dealing with stuff throughout the offseason and kind of delayed camp maybe or something like that. He seems to be playing really well right now. I don’t know exactly what he had going on, but I have a ton of respect for Andrew and he’s playing really well right now.”
(Different players use different motivations for why they play and what they want to accomplish. What are you playing for these final six games?) – “I’m playing for the guys around me. I see how much work these guys put in. I believe in these guys, I believe we have a lot of football in front of us and we can go win a lot of football games. I’m going to give it everything I have with these guys and hopefully come out with wins.”
(It could come down to a shootout against the Colts considering how many points they put up. With the pain that comes with throwing the ball, how do you mentally prepare yourself for that if you do have to throw quite a bit?) – “I’m not concerned with the amount of throws. I’ve had big throwing sessions – over 100 throws – throughout the last week and a bunch today. I don’t know how many I had today. I’m not concerned. It’s at a tolerable level. It’s not something where it’s killer. It doesn’t feel like I’m getting stabbed or anything like that. It’s a tolerable pain. It’s not an issue. I have a ton of respect for this defense. They’re playing good football right now. They play very good fundamentally, they tackle well, they’re in their spots and we’re going to have to sustain drives. They don’t give up a lot of big plays. They do a good job of taking things away down the field. We just have to sustain drives and make the plays that are there.”
(As far as the shoulder, do you have to do anything extra to loosen it up or anything extra after practice to treat it?) – “Of course. It’s a work in process. It’s a process to get things going and get loose and go. Once I’m loose, then I feel really good. It’s a maintenance process of continuing to rehab and build the muscles around. It will be something that I think we’ll sustain the rest of the year is the process of getting ready to go and then rehabbing as well.”
(How confident are you of where you’re at right now from where you were and how can you keep that the last couple weeks of the season?) – “I think even if it stays where it’s at for the rest of the year, I’m totally confident in where it’s at. Hopefully it gets better; but if it doesn’t, then I’m totally okay with that and we can get fully healthy in the offseason. I can make all of the throws and do what I need to do. That won’t be an issue. As far as how far I’ve come, it’s been a big step from first injuring and trying to throw a few weeks later and just really couldn’t throw. That was the stabbing pain and I just didn’t have any juice on the ball. From there to here has been huge steps, and now I’m okay if it’s incremental steps or minimal steps.”
(The offense has been up and down most of the season. With six games left, maybe needing four of those to make the playoffs, is there any extra pressure now to fix some of these issues that have been plaguing the offense quicker or sooner rather than later?) – “We have to go out and execute. I think consistency is our issue. At times, we move the ball well. At times, we’ve scored touchdowns. It’s just been hit or miss on what it’s going to be, whether it’s turning the ball over, explosives, not playing well on third down. We have to be able to put it together for a full game. Sustain drives, convert third downs and then get the ball in the end zone in the red zone. We’ve shown at times, like I said, all aspects of that. We just have to be able to play consistent and put it together. I think we can do it, I believe we can do it; we just have to go make it happen.”
(Head Coach Adam Gase said he thought you were juiced up on Monday. Can you describe your emotions this week and when he told you that you’re going to be our guy?) – “Of course I’m excited. It’s been a hard five weeks of sitting out and kind of sitting back and itching, biting at the bit and doing everything I can to get back out there. To finally be healthy enough to get out there and go and be with my guys, I’m really excited and looking forward to the opportunity.”
