1977 Dolphins Highlights

[Music] in miami where weather forecasts are highly optimistic predictions for the dolphins were clouded by doubt many experts figured them to merely break even with no realistic chance to contend for the afc east title what they overlooked was the genius of don schuler certifiably the best coach in the business shooter's young team often started as many as five first-year players on defense there was however a hearty nucleus of super bowl veterans and an offense led by a quarterback who generaled the championship teams and wanted to see the good times again the super bowl dolphins had no apparent weakness they won on might and muscle and crushed opponents like a steamroller this one had to be more resourceful more daring faint here jab there bob and weave then disappear it was not an attack of long drives but of long plays and the season was aptly named explo 77 [Music] the team reflected shula's drive for perfection and as much as he demanded of them the more they gave back to him it could be a diving catch at the goal line for whatever it took the dolphins were going flat out after a title by year's end the miami dolphins turned the losing record of a year ago into 10 and four and in doing so the want and future champions came within a whistle of winning the afc [Music] east the championship chase began in buffalo where bob griese wore glasses in the rain for the first time and miami's winning streak over the bills reached 15 straight with a 13 to nothing shutout one week later miami traveled to san francisco for the first time in their history to confuse the 49ers gold rush defense and disguise the varied skills of nat moore the dolphins deployed number 89 in three positions moore scored as a flanker on a reverse and again as a setback with a screen pass [Music] more was then hidden at tight end and the result was a 73-yard touchdown his third of the game [Music] after defeating the 49ers 19-15 the dolphins came home and won in a route 27-7 over the houston oilers before the season miami had confidence in its ability to score points but were uncertain as to how many points its defense would allow through three games the unbeaten dolphins proved swift and sure on offense overwhelming on defense with as many as five first-year starters playing defense the unit had allowed only two touchdowns the 53 defense was reborn with bob matheson and the glue that held together the rebuilt defensive line was steady burned and herder veteran hustle was a surprise blitz by charlie babb or tin foley stretched out to deflect a third down pass rookies like safety vern roberson and cornerback norris thomas number 41 played their positions like seasoned pros the secondary's plan was to deny the home run pass and sometimes it meant chasing a receiver out of the stadium while dick anderson and rick bolt shored up the hard-hitting deep defenses nowhere was the dolphins go for broke hell for leather style more evident than at linebacker where steve told number 56 jammed the running game and led the team in tackles there was ample evidence that toll like superman could leap tall buildings in a single bound sophomore linebacker larry gordon number 50 pinched in to pile up plays from the right side at six six and 245 pounds versatile kim beaucamper played virtually two positions he either ran down halfbacks and overpowered them from his basic linebacker slot or he set up as a down lineman and picked the quarterback's pocket in rebuilding the defensive line two rookies would have to mature in a hurry don schuler said after a few weeks of training camp number 73 bob baumhauer and number 77 aj dewey played like veterans tackle bob bohmhauer was a second round draft choice from alabama as the key man in the 3-4 defense he played head up on the center and it was his job to beat his block and disrupt the medal the position also demanded lateral mobility and quick explosion up the gut to the quarterback aj dewey the other half of the southern pride connection was the number one pick from lsu dewey was a starter and a star from his first game number 77 was consistent at muscling runners or rushing passes and led the team in sacks aj was voted the nfl's defensive rookie of the year and in dewey and bamhauer owner joe robbie had two big reasons why his miami dolphins boasted the nfl's best winning percentage in the 1970s in the fourth week the undefeated dolphins ran headlong into a crucial game with the undefeated baltimore coast great expectations burst into high hopes when freddie solomon triggered a big play barrage with a 90-yard kickoff return [Music] running back benny malone's galloping stride carried him to touchdowns of 66 and yards as the dolphins built an early 28-10 lead [Music] while the dolphins had spent all their ammunition quarterback burt jones had not used his and four touchdown passes by jones dealt miami a harsh 45-28 defeat one defeat even such a costly one against a division rival did not deter don schuler and under his lash miami struck back against the new york jets [Music] behind bob greasy shrewd guidance and tight spirals the dolphins ran up an 18-point lead then coasted to victory next they huffed and puffed and blew away the seattle seahawks 31 to 14. [Music] with veterans like number 36 don nottingham providing inspiration there was a growing feeling among the dolphins that nothing could stop them now but knee injuries had claimed ernest roane carl barrasich and mike colon and suddenly dark clouds appeared on the horizon san diego quarterback james harris stunned the dolphins with a rollout touchdown on the last play the heartbreaking 14 to 13 defeat ended the first half of the season on a sour note for instead of one loss miami now had two and it faced the brunt of its schedule in the final seven games from starters to special teams miami held together place kicker gary eupremian was tried and true while rookie mike michelle shared the punting job with larry seifel [Music] the special teams keyed many dolphin victories terry anderson john alexander larry ball wally pursuit steve young and charles cornelius were six tough hitters on a team of hitters [Music] [Applause] [Music] veterans like curtis johnson supplied the discipline and youngsters like lowered mccrary and aj dewey provided the soaring spirit the third ingredient was coaching schuler's staff a bill on parker mike scary tom keane john sandusky howard schnellenberger carl tasseth and george young were teachers and there were valuable lessons to be learned in the season's final seven games [Music] at chase stadium against the jets bob griese attacked with precision passes to a variety of receivers and completed 12 of his 15 attempts number 82 durielle harris caught two touchdowns the defense made a goal-line stand and miami won 14-10 next came a crucial game at the orange bowl against the new england patriots and gary davis sent the dolphins winging to a 17-5 victory with a 73-yard kickoff return the defense led by aj dewey's blocked punt held new england without a touchdown and the offense hammered out a 94-yard touchdown drive with a key pass to jim mandage and the battering runs of norm boulage [Music] the big play occurred when greasy defeated a blitz with a touchdown to nat moore later said it couldn't have been thrown any better if bob came over and put it in my hands the dolphins record stood seven and two when they played the bengals at riverfront stadium miami led 17 to 16 with two and a half minutes to play but then a triple reverse flee flicker pass ended up with bob trumpy in the end zone there was no time to brood over such a bitter loss because four days later the dolphins faced the st louis cardinals who rode a six-game winning streak into thanksgiving day [Music] bob greasy buried st louis under an avalanche of six touchdown passes three to unstoppable nat war behind greasy and later back up quarterback don struck miami rolled up team records of 34 first downs 503 yards eight touchdowns and 55 points the dolphins marched home to a hero's welcome where they would next battle the division leading colts and shut them down with the defensive plan of assistant head coach bill onsparger veteran bob hines helped immobilize baltimore's imposing ground game and bob greasy shot holes to the colts defense tight end andre tillman blasted for one touchdown and rookie leroy harris number 38 ran for 140 yards harris climaxed victory with a 77-yard touchdown the longest run in dolphin history he was so weary on the run he later remarked i never did have the feeling it was going to go all the way i was looking for a filling station to gas up since 1970 the dolphins and colts have swept every title in the afc east and with their 17-6 victory miami and baltimore were dead even for the division league a continuing source of strength was the offensive line tackles wayne moore and mike currant were solid veterans and handyman ed newman backed up everyone everywhere keying the line was all pro sena jim langer whose fierce blocks opened the door to touchdowns paving the way on sweeps were guards larry little number 66 and bob kuchenberg number 67. langer little and kuchenberg formed the core of the super bowl teams and now they were the backbone of this young team commanding this many splendid offense was bob griese the nfl's highest rated quarterback that achievement was impressive considering that he was forced to use eyeglasses and nobody knew how it might affect his game both psychologically and technically what all this proved was that some people underestimated the man his capacities and the weapons at his disposal number 89 nat moore became greasy's most versatile ally he was used at setback tight end and wide receiver and had a firm grasp of each position [Music] every defense was geared to stop him and few of them did as he led the nfl with 12 touchdown catches breaking the dolphin record which had belonged to paul warfield with teams double covering nat moore gracie turned his attentions to a receiver one opposing coach thought has a magnet in his hand number 82 darielle harris has been likened to warfield for he possesses the same flowing stride and ability to concentrate and catch in a crowd [Music] [Applause] [Music] with their offense peaking at just the proper time the dolphins traveled to new england to play the most important game of the year [Music] at fox borough stadium the nine and three dolphins needed victory to claim the afc east outright after allowing two early touchdowns number 51 rusty chambers led a defense that shut out the patriots for the next three [Music] quarters new england blocked off the running lanes so bob griese resorted to an all-out passing barrage that found the vulnerable middle rangers of the patriot zone defense [Music] the dolphins fought back on a greasy touchdown to nat moore but still trailed 14 to 10 late in the last quarters don schuler desperately needed one big play to produce a championship but the dream flooded away when a pass hurried by a blitz he looted not more inside of the goal line while their title chances were slender on the next to last day of the season the dolphins razzer dazzle the buffalo [Music] bills [Music] [Applause] 13th touchdown broke the club record and greasy through his 22nd scoring pass the most in the nfl and a personal high [Music] [Applause] gary davis rushed for 172 yards the second best total in dolphin history and scored a 60-yard touchdown it was an essential victory but ultimately an empty one when the next day baltimore defeated new england to clinch the afc east title but there was so much for the dolphins to be prouder they had come so far so fast when nobody but themselves had thought it possible they were a blend of something old something new and something wonderful they were the 1977 miami dolphins the once and future champions you

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Id: BZPcUgTqDs8

Length: 22min 29sec (1349 seconds)

Published: Sat Jan 30 2021