Has Ryan Tannehill been the biggest fantasy football letdown in 2021?

Tennessee Titans QB Ryan Tannehill has averaged 23 fantasy football points per game since 2019, when he joined the Titans.

In 2020, he averaged over 230 yards per game and had 33 passing TDs and seven on the ground, making him an ideal starting QB in fantasy football. OC Arthur Smith helped Tannehill in rejuvenating his NFL career, but now Smith is leading the Atlanta Falcons. Tannehill finished as a top-10 QB in fantasy football last year, and got drafted in the fourth round. It seems Arthur Smith had a major impact on Tannehill's offense.

Ryan Tannehill is currently ranked as the 20th-best QB in fantasy football heading into Week 4 when the Titans travel to face the New York Jets. It should be an easy game to boost his fantasy scores, but most of his playmakers could be out.

WRs AJ Brown (hamstring) and Julio Jones (lower leg) could end up missing the game. That would mean more production from RB Derrick Henry and less from Ryan Tannehill.

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How has Ryan Tannehill fared in 2021?

Ryan Tannehill has been a fringe QB1 all season, but he shouldn't even be starting this week without Brown and Jones on the field.

Even if they were to play, Tannehill would still be a borderline QB2 option but shouldn't be starting in 1 QB leagues. Despite having Derrick Henry in his backfield, Ryan Tannehill has thrown over 30 passes in a game twice in three weeks. But his completion percentages are low, and his ball security has suffered.

His projections for the 2021 season were around 4,000 passing yards with 32 TDs, ten INTs, 210 rushing yards and three rushing TDs. Tannehill already has three INTs, and is on track to have well over 15. He will likely surpass 210 rushing yards and three TDs, especially if he's struggling with the passing game, and his top WRs are injured.

OC Arthur Smith can obviously be linked to Ryan Tannehill's success in 2019 and 2020. It's never a good thing when a QB has to change offensive coordinators (ie Pittsburgh Steelers with Matt Canada this year).

The Tennessee Titans should have had a top-level offense entering the season. But they've gotten off to a rough start, and their schedule doesn't get much easier. Tannehill needs to find some balance on field to be relevant in fantasy football again, but that doesn't seem likely.

When the chips are down on the Titans, Derrick Henry comes out the hero, not Tannehill. So Tannehill should be traded away sooner rather than later. The deck is stacked against him this year.