The Miami Dolphins finally figured out a way to get Tannehill over the hump against their hated AFC East foe: Trade him to the Tennessee Titans and let them do all the work. Think of it as the Dolphins hiring Tannehill as a hit man, not, like, the Dolphins trading him away for a pair of midround draft picks only to see him grade out as the best quarterback in the NFL this season.
The Titans' 14-13 win over the Patriots this past Saturday could be a game changer for the Dolphins. Brady is a soon-to-be 43-year-old free agent who is not guaranteed to return. Josh McDaniels, the Patriots' offensive coordinator, is likely to take a head coaching job elsewhere this offseason. And, hell, it's not even guaranteed that Patriots coach Bill Belichick doesn't decide this to be the perfect time for retirement.
In short, after years of falsely declaring the Patriots dynasty kaput, we finally seemed to have arrived at a place where New England will see some major changes, thus opening the AFC for business wider than it has been since the late '90s.
The irony of Tannehill, a player who started almost 90 games in an aqua and orange jersey, taking down the Pats the first chance he got outside Miami is not lost on Dolphins fans. Watching it all unfold was as painful as it was enjoyable to see Brady defeated.
Dolphins fans and almost everyone else were in their feelings as the takedown took place. It was as if every team but the Patriots won a playoff game. Finally, our nation was united.
Iconic. pic.twitter.com/X2cbhQ2GMQ
— NFL Memes (@NFL_Memes) January 5, 2020
tom brady and the patriots losing set to the titanic soundtrack pic.twitter.com/7CDi2o3e2v
— WORLD CHAMPS SQUID (@extremelysquid) January 5, 2020
People who accurately and bravely said Brady was washed this year pic.twitter.com/RkjXc1N66L
— Justis Mosqueda (@JuMosq) January 5, 2020
— josh androsky (@ShutUpAndrosky) January 5, 2020
@TomBrady kissing his dreams goodbye pic.twitter.com/Icm4PsIRTa
— Ethan John (@EthanJMoroles) January 5, 2020
Tom Brady tried to get the wildcard W, but Ryan Tannehill and Derrick Henry slapped it away from him #TENvsNE pic.twitter.com/8eSqDm4bOz
— BetOnline.ag (@betonline_ag) January 5, 2020
Sure, it hurts that Tannehill was able to defeat the hated Patriots only after he left Miami, but in the end, it still happened, right? Tannehill had only 76 yards passing and an interception in the win, so it's not as if Dolphins fans had to sit back and watch him slice and dice the Pats' defense. The Titans won the game almost solely because they were able to hold New England scoreless the second half, and Derrick Henry — Tennessee's six-foot-seven, 290-pound running back — was unstoppable.Tom Brady, “the alleged goat” lost to Ryan Tannehill at home pic.twitter.com/0BSa9v6BxU
— kyle (@knicks_tape99) January 5, 2020
In the end, the Patriots dynasty has ended, and someone else can pay Ryan Tannehill $30 million to be a game manager and totally just-fine quarterback. The best thing Tannehill ever did for the Dolphins was the win this past Saturday as a member of the Titans.
