MIAMI _ In the spring of 2001 when the Miami Dolphins were doing their research for the NFL draft, coach Dave Wannstedt and personnel boss Rick Spielman asked offensive coordinator Chan Gailey his opinion on a college quarterback they were interested in named Drew Brees.
The overall review from Gailey was not positive.
Gailey said Brees was "too short" for the NFL.
And he said the idea of selecting a quarterback high in the draft, which needed to be the case to get Brees, could have a harmful effect on incumbent starter Jay Fiedler's comfort level and possibly negatively affect the offense's chemistry.
The Dolphins didn't pick Brees.
And it's not fair to suggest Gailey was the lone reason for that because, obviously, he didn't have final say over the draft. But that evaluation carried weight for the Dolphins.
And that and Gailey's history with young quarterbacks raise fair questions about the direction the franchise is about to go at the quarterback position.
Gailey is in line to be hired by the Dolphins as the replacement for Chad O'Shea as Miami's 2020 offensive coordinator.
On its face this is a great hire because Gailey, 68 next week, is a high-caliber person who has earned the respect of both people he's worked with and competed against throughout his now 46-year coaching career.
But the hire also raises eyebrows because Gailey doesn't have a great history of either identifying or developing young NFL quarterbacks.
And the Dolphins, bless their hearts, need to find a young quarterback.
Miami is fresh off a season in which 37-year-old quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick gained the trust and confidence of the entire organization. But it better dawn on someone in the organization that this guy is lovable and fun and a leader ...
... But he's not the future.
(Read this Brian Flores, Chris Grier, Brandon Shore, Tom Garfinkel, Stephen Ross and all the other folks in those meetings to decide the team's future: Fitz is a cool guy. Fitz is not your franchise QB. Do not buy the fool's gold. Do. Not!).
So the Dolphins badly need to find that young guy to carry the team over the next decade or more. And for at least one year, if the Dolphins draft that guy, Gailey will be in charge of developing him.
And the team will obviously ask Gailey's opinion before that selection is made. So that long ago Brees evaluation matters.
And Gailey's history for developing young QBs matters.
Working backward, Gailey in New York from 2015-2016 had three young quarterbacks to work with _ Geno Smith, who was picked in the first round in 2013, Bryce Petty, who was picked in the third round in 2015, and Christian Hackenberg, who was picked in the second round in 2016
And out of that group, the Jets started Fitzpatrick both years.
And part of that was because someone punched Smith and basically knocked him out of ever being a starter anywhere. But part of that was also because Petty and Hackenberg were bad picks and were never developed into viable backups at minimum.
In Buffalo, Gailey took over as coach in 2010 and inherited Trent Edwards as the starter. And Gailey kept Edwards in that spot the first two games of the regular season.
The problem is Edwards was not a good quarterback. On his last play for the Buffalo Bills, he faced a fourth-down situation late in a game and handled it by running out of bounds seven yards short of the line to make.
So he was done.
And Gailey, choosing between Brian Brohm (another washout) and Fitzpatrick (a 28-year-old career backup) opted for Fitz.
The problem is Gailey kept opting for Fitz. Gailey and the Bills loved Fitz. So they paid Fitz to be their franchise QB in October of 2011. And Fitz's production promptly fell off the table.
So 32 starts and two seasons later, the Bills had won only 12 of 32 games. Fitz was done in Buffalo. And so was Gailey, mostly because he mistakenly believed Fitz to be a franchise QB.
It should be noted there was life without Fitz for Gailey. Go back to 2008 when he was the offensive coordinator for Kansas City.
That year the Chiefs went into the season thinking Brodie Croyle, a third-round pick in 2006, could be the guy. He wasn't.
Neither were Damon Huard, who struggled even before he was injured, nor Tyler Thigpen, who was the team's QB the latter part of a 2-14 season.
Further back, prior to joining the Dolphins, Gailey had success as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys. His team won the NFC East in 1998 with a 10-6 mark but regressed the following year, finishing second in the division and out of the playoffs at 8-8.
But Gailey didn't develop a quarterback during his time in Dallas.
Troy Aikman, who had already won three Super Bowl titles, was Gailey's starter.
During his time in Pittsburgh, in 1996-97, Gailey oversaw the growth of Kordell Stewart from second-year backup to third-year starter. And the Steelers made it to the AFC title game in '97, which they lost to Denver.
But, again, no franchise QB.
Stewart was a gimmick early in his career, playing the "slash" role as both a quarterback and receiver. And when he took over as QB, he was merely solid at best.
He completed 53.6% of his passes in 1996. He threw 21 TDs and 17 interceptions. That was about as good as it would get.
Gailey did coach John Elway in Denver for three seasons from 1988-90 but, again, he took over a veteran who was already fully formed. And actually, Elway was slightly more productive earlier in his career and way better later in his career
This is the history. None of it is opinion. It is what it is.
And that leads to this: What's the end game?
On Monday, the Dolphins website posted a question and answer session with owner Stephen Ross in which he talked about how the team before the 2019 season had an "aging roster" but "are now well-positioned to be a very good football team in the future."
I don't understand how a 37-year-old quarterback and a 67-year-old offensive coordinator coming out of a three-year retirement represent any sort of long-term future.
The only way this makes sense is if Gailey shows up with a new, cutting edge offense that he's been cooking up for three years. The only way it makes sense is if he doesn't repeat the gargantuan Drew Brees evaluation mistake and develops a young quarterback into an elite player for the first time in his NFL career.
