Chad Pennington is out for the season and will undergo his third operation on his right shoulder since 2005. The 33-year-old is in the final year of his contract and his return to Miami next year is uncertain.
Is Pennington going to be forced into retirement?
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The Dolphins quarterback has the arm strength of a teenage girl, but his accuracy and ability to win has kept him in the league.
Pennington has never started 10 games in back-to-back seasons, but he’s led his team to the playoffs every year he’s been healthy.
You know what you get when it comes to Pennington: An efficient quarterback that takes care of the football. He has the highest career completion percentage (66.1) in NFL history and is tied for eighth in career passer rating (90.1) with Drew Brees.
His resume should earn him a job, especially with plenty of team’s quarterback situations being such a mess. But ask Jeff Garcia how easy it is to find a job as an aging quarterback in the NFL.
Like Pennington, Garcia is a winner. He has led three different teams to the playoffs, but the 38-year-old has been released by the Raiders and Eagles already this season.
The NFL has become infatuated with potential. Draft picks are selected on combine numbers over college success. And there has been an influx of young quarterbacks taking up roster spots in the NFL.
There are still teams that value their aging quarterbacks — Kerry Collins and Brett Favre — but will there be a place for Pennington next season?
