The Miami Dolphins have started off 0-3 following their last year’s amazing season where they went worst to first. Not only have they looked bad, but they have just lost Chad Pennington to a serious shoulder injury. Despite seeking a second opinion, Pennington has been placed on the IR. He has had two major shoulder surgeries in his career and could be looking at a third. The Dolphins despite already stating that Chad Henne is their quarterback of the future, made a trade to bolster the depth at the position. An undisclosed 2010 draft choice was sent to Kansas City for Tyler Thigpen.
This trade may not jump out at everybody, but it does to me. Last year I remember having a conversation with fellow blogger Frank O’Brien about how Thigpen was playing well as a starter for a horrendous team. Thigpen took the backseat once more when the Chiefs traded for Matt Cassel. This new opportunity could prove dividends for Thigpen. Three years removed from what was a promising quarterback draft class, Thigpen is the cream of the crop. Lets face it, Jamarcus Russell is the worst quarterback in football(Well predicted by me years ago). Brady Quinn, the second quarter back taken that year, is not far behind him(unwisely predicted by me years ago).
Last year Thigpen made his debut as their full time starter against the New York Jets, and he improved once he was given the vote of confidence. Thigpen after taking over full time had a unimpressive record of 1-9, however he was not the problem. From that point on Thigpen posted an 84.6 passer rating, throwing for 2216 yards, 16 touchdowns with only 8 interceptions. This included an average of 11.5 yards per completion. Although its difficult to compare quarterbacks because of the many different situations they are drafted into, but lets look at how the current star quarterbacks in the fared their first 10 starts.
Tyler Thigpen- 192 for 330 2216 yards 16 TD 8 INT
Tony Romo- 204 for 310 2641 yards 16 TD 10 INT
Ben Roethlisberger- 152 for 248 1908 yards 12 TD 6 INT
Drew Brees- 190 for 309 1999 yards 12 TD 11 INT
Eli Manning- 115 for 235 1314 yards 9 TD 11 INT
Tom Brady- 193 for 292 2036 yards 16 TD 7 INT
Thigpen may never play close to the level that these current quarterbacks play at, however his first 10 starts seem just as promising as any of these, but what has he lacked that the others havent? 
The label as a number one overall pick, the face of “America’s team,” the quarterback put in the perfect situation where he can win instantly, or even viewed by his team as the steal of the draft allowing you to pick a hall of fame running back. Instead Thigpen has been viewed as a average backup quarterback who did a decent job on a bad team in 2008. Now Thigpen has moved to Miami, where maybe he can begin to receive some credit and build a legacy of his own.
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