Impressive pro day for Tannehill

COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Texas A & M quarterback Ryan Tannehill broke his right foot in early January, then days later needed crutches to help him walk down the aisle to marry his longtime girlfriend.

Following surgery, he wasn't even cleared to throw the football until late February and couldn't work out for scouts until his pro day Thursday morning at the Aggies' indoor practice complex.

Yet Tannehill, who managed only a 12-7 record as a starter, is one of the hottest, most talked-about players in the NFL draft, which now is less than 4 weeks away.

The Eagles will send their coaches to College Station next month to check out Tannehill in a private workout. The Eagles, according to Fox Sports, also will be conducting a private session for Michigan State quarterback Kirk Cousins, who trained with Tannehill in Orlando, Fla. Cousins is projected as a second-day draft pick.

There's a good chance Tannehill, who threw one bad pass out of 68 during his pro day, will be long gone by the time the Eagles draft at No. 15 unless they decide to make a trade.

Cleveland, which owns pick No. 4, seems to be the early favorite to land Tannehill. It sets up the possibility that three of the top four draft picks will be quarterbacks if, as expected, Indianapolis selects Stanford's Andrew Luck and Washington goes with Baylor's Robert Griffin III.

"I thought he had a great workout," Brad Childress, the Browns' new offensive coordinator, said of Tannehill. "He's played in a system that prepared him for every throw there is in the NFL."

And Miami, with the eighth selection, sent new head coach Joe Philbin along with general manager Jeff Ireland to College Station. They hosted Tannehill for a steak dinner Wednesday night at one of the town's top restaurants.

The Dolphins would be a natural fit for the 6-4, 223-pound Tannehill. New Miami offensive coordinator Mike Sherman was Tannehill's head coach at A & M. Two seasons ago, Sherman benched then-senior Jerrod Johnson, who was in the Eagles' training camp last summer, in favor of Tannehill, a former wide receiver. In an odd twist, Sherman was fired after A & M's disappointing 7-6 season last fall, while Tannehill's draft status has not been tainted.

Seattle also is showing interest in Tannehill. Coach Pete Carroll came to watch Tannehill to see if he's worthy of the Seahawks' 12th pick.

"I thought he had a great workout," Carroll said. "It was kind of what you hoped and expected to see."

Tannehill showed his athleticism by running a 40-yard dash in a time that was clocked from 4.58 to 4.62 seconds, depending on who was holding the stopwatch.

Chris Weinke, who won the Heisman in 2000, has been training Tannehill in Orlando. He scripted all 68 passes for the pro day. All were under center - Tannehill spent half his time in the shotgun last fall - with a handful of passes calling for Tannehill to roll to his right or left. Tannehill was 65-for-68, with two drops.

"It's been fun," Tannehill said. "I'm trying to concentrate on things I can control. When the day comes, I'm going to let it rip."