The New England Patriots came into Week 17 against the Miami Dolphins as overwhelming favorites to win, secure a 1st-round bye in the 2020 playoffs and potentially return to their fourth consecutive Super Bowl. And then Ryan Fitzpatrick and company came to town and shocked New England. With a 27-24 Dolphins victory in hand, Miami returned to start the offseason and the Patriots looked to prep for something they hadn’t had in a decade.
A Wild Card game. And boy, did the Patriots look to be in trouble, based on their play against Miami.
Turns out they were. Former Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill notched his first career postseason win last night while steering the Titans to a 20-13 victory over the New England Patriots, knocking the Patriots from the AFC playoffs and starting their season with the organization facing more uncertainty than any time in recent memory.
Here’s to you, Ryan Tannehill. The playoff Tannehill looked a lot more like the one we were accustomed to seeing in South Florida, not the explosive passer that’s flashed this season in Tennessee. But none the less, Miami never gave Tannehill a running back like Derrick Henry to lean on — and Henry churned through the Patriots’ defense like a hot knife through butter. Yet with the Titans facing the opportunity to milk the clock inside the final 5 minutes, it was Tannehill who came up big, throwing for a first down to further position the Titans to ice the game while leading 14-13.
Tannehill and company will now head to Baltimore to face the Ravens. And the Patriots? They’ll need to figure out what the heck is going to happen with Tom Brady — whose contract expires this offseason. Father Time catches us all, Brady may be an outlier but he’s not an exception. Will Bill Belichick decide this is the time for a divorce between he and the quarterback that have dominated the AFC landscape for 20 years? Or will the Patriots run it back for one more ride in 2020?
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