The play of Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick has definitely been a surprise to everyone — despite playing behind a makeshift offensive line, the grizzled veteran has transitioned himself from a careless, free wielding gunslinger into the caretaker of Miami’s fragile passing attack — he’s protecting the football at one of the most impressive rates in his long-tenured NFL career and doing so despite little to no rushing offense to lean on and keep defense off balance.
Is Fitzpatrick a long-term answer for Miami? No, of course not. But he’s been better than advertised for Miami and is playing a lot of fun football while simultaneously energizing the Dolphins’ offense.
And folks have taken notice. Each week, NFL.com releases a weekly quarterback power ranking of all 32 starters in the NFL and Fitzpatrick has continued to steadily climb out of the cellar. At the beginning of the season, Fitzpatrick was regarded as the worst of the worst. But now? Miami’s quarterback situation is rated as better than 10 teams across the league — Fitzpatrick has climbed to a tie for 22nd on the power rankings list.
Here’s what NFL.com’s Ali Bhanpuri had to say about Fitzpatrick’s play:
“Fitzpatrick continues to impress despite starting alongside as many undrafted players on offense (4) as he does first-, second- and third-rounders. The 15th-year vet doesn’t care, though. He’s a tried-and-true gamer. Line up whoever you want next to him, he’s still going to aggressively take shots downfield and fearlessly barge through creases in the defense. His 65 rushing yards last Sunday were the most by any QB in Week 14 and increased his three-week total to 112, which ranks second among passers…other than a tight-window interception on an overly ambitious throw, Fitzpatrick put a number of quality plays on tape to warrant a rise up these rankings.” – Ali Bhanpuri, NFL.com
Indeed, Fitzpatrick’s sustained and stabilized play isn’t something that should be overlooked and his inspired play gives the Dolphins a blueprint for what they need to look for in their next franchise quarterback.
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