The Facts: Following up on the ongoing story. ... For the first time as a pro, rookie Tannehill took snaps with the first-team offense Thursday, showing HC Joe Philbin is serious about giving his first-round pick a shot at the starting job. "I think it's on an as-earned basis," Philbin said, when asked about Tannehill getting first-team work. "He's throwing the ball well enough in the couple of days he's been at practice. It's been earned."

Diehards Line:Until this morning, Up until then, Tannehill had worked solely with the reserves. According to Herald staffer Adam Beasley, Tannehill showed at one point why the Dolphins have such high-hopes for him. He launched a deep pass to Chad Johnson down the right side that would have been a sure touchdown, if not broken up by Nolan Carroll at the last moment. Tannehill later flashed touch, connecting with Johnson on short and intermediate routes. ... Despite the strong showing, the move was no indication that Tannehill has an inside track on the starting job. The team still needs to install 25 percent of its offense, and is holding off on any true evaluation until then. Furthermore, Philbin said Tannehill, Matt Moore and David Garrard were essentially tied statistically through the first five days of camp. Still, if Tannehill continues to build momentum, it's hard to imagine a reason not to push the rookie into the starting role.