A Salute to Fitz ... And His Unique Place in Dolphins History
Ryan Fitzpatrick's gypsy-style NFL career is over after 17 seasons spent with nine teams, one of them the Miami Dolphins.
While his record as starting quarterback for the Dolphins was under .500, Fitzpatrick certainly left an impression — a good one — during his two years in Miami.
FITZPATRICK WAS A FUN QUARTERBACK
As he was throughout his NFL career, Fitzpatrick was fun.
And it wasn't just his outgoing personality, with his quick wit and self-deprecating humor, which should make him great as an analyst if that's the post-career path he chooses.
Fitzpatrick was fun to watch on the field as well because he simply was always willing to let it loose, sometimes to his detriment, whether it was throwing into coverage, throwing a block downfield or trying to run over a defender — in a preseason game no less.
No, Fitzpatrick wasn't necessarily a great quarterback, but he actually was pretty good during his two seasons with the Dolphins.
In 2019, he guided a team in a clear rebuilding phase that started 0-7 to five victories in the final nine games, punctuated by the shocking 27-24 victory at Gillette Stadium in the season finale that paved the way for the end of the New England Patriots dynasty.
In 2020, he posted during his nine games a passer rating of 95.6, which was the best by a Dolphins quarterback since Chad Pennington had a 97.4 in 2008 when he finished tied for second in the NFL MVP voting behind Peyton Manning.
That 95.6 mark was the second-best among all the Dolphins quarterbacks that followed Dan Marino after his retirement in March 2000.
FITZPATRICK'S STRANGE CIRCUMSTANCES
As much as anything, though, Fitzpatrick's time in Miami could be remembered for him playing when he shouldn't have been playing and then not playing when he should have.
Let's start with the former, specifically the decision first to have him start the 2019 opener and then have him return to the lineup after Josh Rosen flopped during his brief audition.
That 2019 season for the Dolphins was about resetting the roster — and/or tank, depending on who you want to believe or how you want to look at it — and making the playoffs never really seemed like a realistic goal.
So what was the point of having Fitzpatrick at quarterback instead of Rosen, for whom the Dolphins traded second- and fifth-round picks? Sure, maybe the argument could be made that then-coach Brian Flores established "his culture" and made believers in the locker room with that 5-4 finish, but maybe it would have made more sense to more thoroughly investigate Rosen's quarterbacking capabilities at the NFL level while getting the benefit of a higher pick with each loss.
That decision actually might not even have been as egregious as the one made in 2020 to pull Fitzpatrick from the starting lineup during the bye and insert then-rookie Tua Tagovailoa in his place.
The move was made despite the Dolphins having won their previous two games by 26 and 24 points to get to 3-3 on the season, with Fitzpatrick throwing three touchdown passes in each game.
Making the move at that point suggested the 2020 season was about getting Tagovailoa game experience, but then that logic disappeared when Fitzpatrick replaced him after halftime in games against Denver and Las Vegas.
Fitzpatrick's Zoom session with the media after the quarterback change, complete with his words and expression showing his devastation at the move, remains a painful memory from his time in Miami.
After coming up short against Denver, Fitzpatrick was able to rally the Dolphins to a victory in that wild game at Las Vegas, thanks to the improbable — miraculous almost — "Facemask Pass" to Mack Hollins.
It would be his last game in a Dolphins uniform. The week after the Vegas comeback was the win-and-in season finale at Buffalo, but Fitzpatrick spent it on the COVID-19 list.
It was a bitter end to what overall was a mostly positive experience for Fitzpatrick in Miami, though no one should suggest he would have made a major difference in the 56-26 loss against the Bills.
FITZPATRICK'S FINAL CHAPTER
That he would leave last offseason pretty much was a foregone conclusion because there was no way he would play ahead of Tagovailoa in 2021, but his next venture ended after only one start with Washington because of a season-ending hip injury.
Fitzpatrick's retirement was revealed from a text message he sent to former teammates that showed countless names in different type style and size of players with whom he played.
Looking at the text, shared on Twitter by former Bills teammate Fred Jackson, we can recognize former Dolphins teammates like Tua Tagovailoa, Mike Gesicki, DeVante Parker, Ted Karras and Daniel Kilgore.
Fitzpatrick wrote at the bottom: "Forever grateful for the magical ride."
For those of us who covered Fitzpatrick in his two years in Miami, that time certainly was a fun ride.
