14-year NFL veteran quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick signed a two-year, $11 million deal with the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. With incentives, Fitzpatrick has the opportunity to earn between $17 and $20 million. Fitzpatrick spent the past two seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but has played on seven different teams throughout his NFL career.
Miami has its new starting quarterback. Dolphins reached agreement on a two-year deal with former Buccaneers’ QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, per source. Fitzpatrick now will join his third AFC East team, having already started for the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 17, 2019
Miami Dolphins Sign Ryan Fitzpatrick to Two-Year Deal
Ryan Fitzpatrick appeared in eight games for Tampa Bay in 2018, starting seven. Initially filling in for a suspended Jameis Winston, Fitzpatrick recorded 1,230 yards, 11 touchdowns, and four interceptions through the first three games of the season. Fitzpatrick’s strong start to the season earned him the starting job even when Winston returned to the team. For the remainder of the season, Fitzpatrick and Winston went back and forth as Tampa Bay’s starter. In all, Fitzpatrick ended 2018 completing 66.7% of his passes for 2,366 yards, 17 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions.
Fitzpatrick initially arrived in the NFL as the St. Louis Rams’ seventh-round pick in the 2005 NFL Draft. Starting in three games as a rookie, Fitzpatrick completed 56.3% of his passes for 777 yards, four touchdowns, and eight interceptions. Fitzpatrick appeared in just one game during the 2006 season but didn’t record a single pass attempt. The Rams traded Fitzpatrick to the Cincinnati Bengals for a seventh-round pick prior to the 2007 season.
Fitzpatrick barely played in 2007, but the Harvard alumni was Cincinnati’s primary starter throughout the 2008 season. Starting 13 games for an injured Carson Palmer, Fitzpatrick recorded 1,905 passing yards, eight touchdowns, and nine interceptions during his time in Cincinnati.
Fitzpatrick signed with the Buffalo Bills as an unrestricted free agent. Initially signed as a backup, Fitzpatrick ended up starting eight games for the Bills, recording 1,422 yards, nine touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. The journeyman quarterback built on that success in 2010, recording career-highs in passing yards (3,000), touchdowns (23), and throwing 15 interceptions. Fitzpatrick entered 2011 as Buffalo’s starting quarterback and led the Bills to a 5-2 record while earning a six-year, $59 million extension. However, Buffalo crawled to a 1-8 finish, while Fitzpatrick ended the year with 3,832 passing yards, 24 touchdowns, and 23 interceptions.
Fitzpatrick spent one more year with the Bills before joining the Tennessee Titans and Houston Texans on one-year deals. Fitzpatrick joined the Jets in 2015 to back up Geno Smith, but Smith missed the season opener with a jaw injury. Forced into the starter’s role, Fitzpatrick finished the season with 3,905 yards, 31 touchdowns, and 15 interceptions. New York just missed the playoffs at 10-6 and brought Fitzpatrick back for another season. Unfortunately, Fitzpatrick couldn’t recapture the magic, as the journeyman quarterback finished 2016 with 2,710 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions.
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