Miami Dolphins fans have waited a dozen, maddening years for Dan Marino's heir to arrive.
They won't have to wait much longer to see if Ryan Tannehill is that guy.
Dolphins coach Joe Philbin announced Tannehill, the strong-armed rookie from Texas A&M, as the team's starting quarterback Monday afternoon - formally ending a competition that began when the Dolphins took Tannehill eighth overall on April 26.
Tannehill beat out Matt Moore, the sixth-year veteran who ended the 2011 season as the Dolphins' starter, but who has been largely unimpressive in this month's practices and pre-season games. David Garrard had been the atop the depth chart before his knee injury took him out of the running.
"It was a close competition, but in the end, we feel like this is the best decision for our football team at the present time," Philbin explained. "We like the way he handles himself.
"He's relatively mature," Philbin added. "We like his poise."
And, according to Philbin's own criteria, they think Tannehill gives the team its best chance to win now - showing extraordinary confidence in Tannehill considering he was a collegiate wide receiver this time two years ago.
Yet, here he is, on the verge of becoming the first rookie quarterback to open the season as the starter in the team's 46-year history.
Neither Marino nor fellow Hall of Famer Bob Griese can claim that distinction.
Philbin informed Tannehill and Moore of his decision Monday morning - and although both knew the news when they met with reporters in the afternoon, each played coy.
They were presumably under orders to let Philbin break the news first, and so both feigned ignorance when asked if a decision had been made.
Still, the signs were there for anyone who saw the team practice earlier in the day. For the first time, Tannehill took every snap with the No. 1 offence, while Moore ran the scout team - a task often reserved for a third-string quarterback, not a player with a chance to start.
"The guy's got the talent to be in the league," Moore said of Tannehill on Monday. "He obviously understands the game very well.
"He's capable of being a starting quarterback in the NFL," Moore added. "He works his butt off. He's got everything you want. I think the coaches understand that."
The next question: Is he capable of being a winning quarterback in his first year? The odds aren't in his favour. The combined record of starting rookie quarterbacks drafted in the last two seasons is 37-65.
Even Peyton Manning struggled as a rookie but Tannehill will be asked to turn around a franchise that has had losing records in five of the past six seasons.
Coaches often strip down the playbook to make it easier on their young quarterbacks. But that might not be the case with Tannehill because he will be running essentially the same offensive system he directed at Texas A&M.
Dolphins offensive coordinator Mike Sherman was Tannehill's college coach.
"He won't need to think too much because he's been through it hundreds and hundreds of times," Philbin said.
YOUNG LIKELY TO BE BILLS' BACKUP
ORCHARD PARK, New York. - Vince Young has the inside track to win the Buffalo Bills' backup quarterback job.
Bill coach Chan Gailey made the announcement Monday after the team returned to practice following a two-day break. He says, Young performed well enough in the first two pre-season games to warrant more work with the second-team offence leading into Buffalo's preseason home game against Pittsburgh on Saturday.
Since signing with Buffalo in May, Young has been competing with returning backup Tyler Thigpen for the No. 2 job.
