Written by Adam Schefter and Jeff Darlington at ESPN
The Miami Dolphins now fear that quarterback Ryan Tannehill will need season-ending knee surgery; however, no decision on surgery has been made at this time, according to sources close to the situation.
As second and third opinions await, Tannehill still could decide to rest the knee for six to eight weeks and try to come back from the injury again, sources said.
But the Dolphins are growing increasingly concerned that surgery will be the most viable and likely option as they and their starting quarterback sift through their choices.
“He’s done, I think,” one source predicted Thursday night, referring to Tannehill’s hopes of returning this season.
Tannehill must decide whether he wants to wait at least six weeks to let the knee heal and take another shot at playing this year or go ahead and have the surgery, which would end his season.
The Dolphins recognize they might have to step in and recommend the surgery that Tannehill has avoided since he initially injured the knee in December against the Arizona Cardinals.
One source said Thursday that, because Tannehill did not repair his partially torn ACL during the offseason, his knee was “a ticking time bomb that was going to go off at any time.”
It happened Thursday, on a noncontact play, when Tannehill crumbled to the ground while scrambling in practice.
Tannehill underwent an MRI, and the Dolphins know they will be without him for at least a significant amount of time.
The Dolphins have a competent backup in Matt Moore, who took over first-team reps for the remainder of Thursday’s practice after Tannehill was hurt. But Moore was prone to some big hits last season that could make him vulnerable to injury as well.
To continue reading this article, click here.
