- [Narrator] Dan Marino is one
of the greatest quarterbacks in the history of the NFL. His peers envied his
near perfect technique, a combination of accuracy
and quick clean release, which he used to fire
lasers into tight coverage at almost any distance. Simply put, he was a generational talent. By the end of his first
full regular season with the Miami Dolphins, Marino shattered major NFL QB records. For years, he held single season records in passing yards,
completions and touchdowns. Records that stood until
other Hall of Famers arrived to break them. Marino's 17 season career in Miami made him a nine time
Pro Bowler, an NFL MVP, and a first ballot Hall of Famer in 2005. But when he retired in 2000, he walked away with only
one AFC Championship win and no Super Bowl victory. In fact, he is the winningest quarterback to never hoist the Lombardi trophy. Why is that? How did such an explosive once in a lifetime talent like
Dan Marino end up untitled? (soft music) In 1983, Dan Marino was crestfallen as he watched five other
quarterbacks selected ahead of him in the first round of the NFL Draft. Marino was a star quarterback
for the Pitt Panthers playing particularly well in his sophomore and junior seasons. But during his senior
year, his numbers dipped and the Panthers finished that season with a demoralizing
loss at the Cotton Bowl. Also, scouts were reportedly
less than thrilled about his partying on campus, narcs. Anyway, Marino was
selected as the 27th pick in the first round. But being selected later in the order put Marino on a top contending
team, the Miami Dolphins, who had just won the AFC Championship before ultimately losing to
Washington in Super Bowl 17. Marino had his work cut out for him, but he'd get to work for a
team with winning potential. He made his first NFL start
in week six of the 1983 season replacing flailing veteran
David Woodley behind center. He became an instant sensation. Marino was the exact offensive
spark that Miami needed. The Dolphins won nine of their
last 10 games of the season and rode that momentum into the playoffs. But in the divisional
round against the Seahawks, despite a strong first quarter for Marino, the offense collapsed. And then in the final minutes, a spectacular implosion
by the special teams unit iced the game. Following a Seattle touchdown that gave them a four point lead. The ensuing kickoff was fumbled
by Miami's Fulton Walker. Seattle recovered, turned that into a field
goal a few plays later, then Walker fumbled again on that kickoff, which Seattle also recovered, and this time just ran out the clock. So a rather sudden and deflating ending to a season otherwise filled with promise. Miami had a new star quarterback, Marino's fellow players
named him the AFC starter in the Pro Bowl. Marino was on the cusp of greatness, but would it be enough to
take down a juggernaut? 1984 was the best season
of Dan Marino's career. It was one of the best seasons
a quarterback had ever had. Marino shattered single season records. He was on another level. His 48 touchdowns were 12
more than the previous record and 16 more than any other quarterback in the league that year. Marino was helped in this effort by his strong receiving corps
led by fellow Pro Bowlers, Mark Duper and Mark Clayton
collectively the Marks Brothers. Coming up as second-stringers together, Marino and the Marks Brothers
had a special chemistry that developed into a lethal
offensive combination. Clayton even set a record of his own. The Dolphins were also backed
by their defensive core, dubbed the Killer B's on account of nearly all their
last names beginning with B. Clever. In 1983, the
B's allowed fewer points than any defense in the league and carried that stifling ability into '84. The Dolphins stomped the competition. Finished 14 and two and
rolled into the playoffs. Their first order of business was exacting revenge on the Seahawks. In the AFC Championship
game against the Steelers, the Dolphins offense put
together a show of force that included five
consecutive touchdown drives. Marino snagged a few
championship game records while he was at it. Not bad for the 23 year-old, considering he threw his last pass with 11 minutes still left in the game. With that the Dolphins punched
their ticket to Stanford to face off against the
best team in the league, the San Francisco 49ers. Powered by one of the
league's best quarterbacks in Joe Montana. The 49ers that year became the first to ever win 15 regular season games. They had powerful and
versatile offensive weapons and running backs, Roger
Craig and Wendell Tyler, and a deep threat receiving
corp starring Dwight Clark. Their defense allowed the fewest points in the regular season. And all four of their
starting defensive backs were Pro Bowl selections
whose primary objective was to make Marino's life
as difficult as possible in Stanford. Despite this, the consensus was that Marino would be unstoppable coming off of his historic regular
season performance. Montana, who said his goal
was simply winning games, took this personally. By the end of the first
quarter, Miami led 10-7, but it would be their
last lead of the game. In the second quarter,
Marino and the Dolphins went hree-and-out, three straight times. And the Niners responded to
each one with a touchdown. Marino managed to take the
Dolphins on a 72-yard drive only to score a field goal. On the ensuing kick
return, a bit of confusion from the Niners' Guy
McEntire led to this fumble and recovery by the Dolphins, which they turned into another field goal just before halftime, but that
spark failed to light a fire. And the vaunted Niners defense
held the Dolphins scoreless in the second half while
piling on another 10 points. The 49ers succeeded by doing exactly what they set out to do: put pressure on, and shut down, Marino. The Dolphins, despite their talents, were simply outplayed by
a historically good squad. Although there was guilt to share, an irritated Marino blamed himself and vowed to make it back
to the big game, and soon. So at only 23, Dan Marino ended
his first full NFL season, firmly embedded in the record books. And the Dolphins had been
to the Super Bowl twice in three seasons. The future looked bright in Miami, but could Marino get the
organizational support he needed to take them all the way? Despite last season's success, the 1985 season got off to a rocky start. A contract dispute between
Marino and Dolphins GM, Mike Robbie led to Marino holding out and missing more than a
month of training camp. And then in week two, one of his favorite targets
went down with a knee injury. And by week nine of 1985, Miami had an alarming
five and four record. But after Dupers returned, the Dolphins rallied and won
their remaining seven games clinching the AFC East for
the fifth consecutive year. Tucked in there was Marino's week 13 rout of the then-undefeated Chicago Bears who had entered the night
having allowed just 68 points across their previous nine games combined. Marino and the Dolphins
netted 38 - pretty good. But the Dolphins were finding
that any success came solely from the offense and almost
in spite of the defense. In the divisional round
of the playoffs that year, Miami squeaked out a win
against the Cleveland Browns who had nearly stopped
the Dolphins in two ways; defensively Cleveland's backfield shutdown Marino's favorite
targets, the Marks Brothers, which forced Marino to
throw short or scramble. Offensively, they made a point of attacking the Dolphins run defense. This nearly worked. And the following week in
the AFC Championship game, the Patriots took a cue from Cleveland. The pressure from New England
caused six Miami turnovers, two interceptions for Marino and four fumbles on a wet day in Miami. The Patriots converted those turnovers into 24 points on their
way to a commanding victory, a painful follow-up playoff exit for the Dolphins after
last season's success. In '86, the bottom just fell
out for the Dolphins defense. In a miserable week,
one rout by San Diego, Miami gave up the second most points in franchise history up to that point, a distinction they'd make again just two weeks later against the Jets. By the end of the season, Miami's once great defense
had given up more points than anyone in the AFC. There were a few reasons
for the disintegration, among the most consequential was the loss of inside
linebacker, A.J. Duhe, around whom Miami's
defensive scheme was built. Marino was repeatedly
left with the dubious task of outscoring the damage done by the Dolphins' poorest defense. This understandably frustrated Marino. Your team not making the playoffs for the first time in six years, despite carrying the league's best offense will do that to you. And not helping matters was
Marino's continued friction with the Dolphins front office. Marino was annoyed with the
organization's tight wallet, noting how much money
the franchise was making and how much more his peers
were getting paid elsewhere. Before the season even started rumors swirled that it would
be Marino's last with Miami. Tensions were kind of high, fans started to boo Marino at home. The Dolphins ultimately held onto Marino, but things didn't improve much
over the next three seasons. And Miami missed the
playoffs in each of them. '87 was truncated by a
player strike after week two. When Marino and the regular
starters returned in week seven, disgruntled fans said Marino and his squad were so disappointing. They wondered if they could have the replacement players back. After getting destroyed by the Bears in week one of the '88 season, critics and players alike
were immediately despondent, and they were right to be. The Dolphins followed a
six win season in' 88 with an eight win season
the following year. Before the 1990 season, Coach Don Shula and team management
made a number of changes to take some of the pressure off Marino. They use their top two
draft picks that year to shore up the offensive line. With the goal to create more running room for second year back, Sammy Smith and their dormant ground game. And they replaced aging
and injured veterans on the defensive side
with an explicit focus on shoring up their run defense and keeping opponents beatable. After years of frustration, the moves paid off and the
Dolphins found their way back into the playoffs, but a recurring foe kept
their progress in check. The Dolphins finished 1990 at 12 and four, beat the Chiefs in the wildcard game and advanced to face their division rival, the Buffalo Bills. Between 1990 and 1995, the Dolphins and Bills met
three times in the playoffs. None of them ended well
for Marino or the Dolphins. The Bills were helmed by
quarterback Jim Kelly. The third of those five
quarterbacks drafted ahead of Marino back in 1983. The Dolphins first playoff
match up against the Bills came in the 1990 divisional round. After scoring early, Kelly and the Bills held the lead for the entire game. Despite Miami's bounce back season, their defense fell apart and
the blame was shouldered mostly by Dolphin safety, Louis Oliver, who the Bills repeatedly torched before Miami benched Oliver at halftime. Another factor according to the Dolphins, at least was the weather. Despite taking extra precautions
for playing in the snow. The team from Florida
spent most of the game on their literal asses
while Kelly got hot. After an eight and eight season in '91, the Dolphins returned to
the playoffs again in '92, shut out the Chargers, 31-0
in the divisional round and faced off against the Bills in the AFC Championship game. Despite coming off a three
week hiatus for a knee injury, Kelly once again, spanked the Dolphins en route to a 29-10 victory and their third straight AFC Championship. Miami's defense couldn't
stop the Bills rush attack, but they also did themselves
no favors on offense, turning the ball over five times, three of those on lost fumbles and also allowing four sacks on Marino. Marino also gave up two interceptions and didn't throw his only touchdown until late in the fourth quarter with the game already out of hand. Marino's frustration after
the game was palpable. He was 31 with many of
his best years behind him. And it seemed like deep down, he suspected then what we
know now to be the truth that this would likely be
the closest he'd get again to the Super Bowl. The Dolphins met the Bills
again in the '95 playoffs, but a few key events had transpired in the intervening years. During the '93 offseason, Marino lost his favorite,
though declining, targets in the Marks Brothers. Clayton and free agency to the Packers and Duper who was cut
during training camp. Later that season Marino went down with an Achilles tear that kept him out for the remainder of the year. And in '94, the Dolphin suffered another
devastating playoff loss. This time to the Chargers
in the divisional round. Up 21-6 at halftime, the
Dolphins stopped San Diego on a potential score and
drive at their own one. And then immediately gave up
a safety on the next snap. After the Chargers turned that
into another seven points, they scored again with less
than a minute remaining in the fourth quarter,
putting the score at 22-21. The Dolphins put together a
promising last minute drive helped along by a 32-yard
pass interference call against the Chargers, but with seconds remaining veteran kicker, Pete Stoyanovich, lined up for a game winning 48
yard field goal and missed it wide, right and short, just brutal. So a year later and back to the Bills after limping into the
wild card game in '95 with a nine and seven record,
critics and fans both knew that if there was ever going to be a time to get the Lombardi Trophy into the hands of either
Marino or Don Shula, whose last Super Bowl win was 1973, that window was rapidly closing. The Bills dumped 27 points on the Dolphins through three quarters before Marino and the Dolphins could muster a response, which once again was too little too late. Miami's run defense in that game allowed a franchise worst 341 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. Marino did his damnedest with his own commanding performance, but the high wire act
had failed once again and the ruse of Miami being anything other than a one
dimensional team evaporated. Bill's defensive and,
Phil Hanson even said, "it looked like the Dolphins tried to run, but just gave up." By the end, Buffalo
alone had outscored Miami by a combined 44 points
over three post-season games from 1990 through 1995. A week later, Don Shula with another year
remaining on his contract announced his surprise retirement. It was a sour end to the head coaches, otherwise legendary career. Players were shocked including Marino. But Shula admitted he was frustrated. And the critics said
that given the way Miami had been playing, it was
the most dignified time for him to go. The Dolphins immediately
started their search for a new head coach and just as immediately
settled on a favorite, Jimmy Johnson, formerly
of the Dallas Cowboys and commentator for Fox. Within the week, it was a done deal. And JJ became the Dolphins head coach. Local writers and fans loved the match. "Johnson knew how to win," they said. Perhaps forgetting that he
replaced the winningest coach in NFL history. Ownership had great faith
that Johnson could come in and make something happen
with the remaining weapons the Dolphins had at their disposal, even Marino was excited. But from the outset, Johnson knew that the key to success was actually to wean Miami off of Marino. Johnson was hip to the
importance of preparing for days when Marino wasn't up to snuff, a very, very rare occurrence, he stressed by bolstering the offensive ground game and shoring up the defense. This proved to be harder than it looked. Midway through a middling
season, Miami hopeful panicked. The run game that Johnson
had planned to rely on never materialized. Over time, his relationship
with Marino suffered, especially after Johnson
fired Offensive Coordinator, Gary Stevens, a holdover
from the Don Shula years at the end of the '97 season. In an effort to take more control and responsibility of his struggling team Johnson revoked Marino's ability to call plays at the line of scrimmage, which Marino claimed was like playing with one arm tied behind his back. With Johnson at the helm, Marino and the Dolphins never saw past the second round of the playoffs. Johnson tried retiring
after the third year of his four-year contract. Despite their strained relationship, Marino encouraged him to
return for his fourth year. But frustrations continued to mount. A particularly bad dust up after a Monday night football loss to the Bills caused whatever
relationship was left to completely dissolve. But some still held out
hope that despite the odds, despite the inconsistent
offense, despite his age, Marino could still make
it happen in the playoffs. The Dolphins clawed into the 1999 playoffs with a 9-7 record and moved
to the divisional round after a wildcard win
against the Seahawks. What went down in that
final game of the season and the final game of Dan Marino's career is the stuff of perverse legend. A 62-7 drubbing by the
Jacksonville Jaguars, the largest margin of victory
in a modern era playoff game. It was an abysmal showing by the team, but particularly Marino who
put up embarrassing numbers. He said afterwards, he had never experienced a
game like that in his life. Fans called for Marino to retire. The next day, Jimmy Johnson
beat him to the punch and announced his resignation. A couple of months later,
Marino would join him, opting out of the final
two years of his contract and ending his 17 year career
with the Miami Dolphins. Five years later, Marino was
elected to the Hall of Fame in the first year of his eligibility. During his acceptance speech, he thanked his two favorite
targets, the Marks Brothers. and threw this final
declarative pass to Mark Clayton in the middle of the
crowd, he said at the time that it was what every
retired quarterback wanted, one more shot, one more chance
to go deep and win it all. But part of it was also a reminder for both himself and his fans. A reminder of when his
name was on the lips of every football fan in the country and when every quarterback
wanted to be him. An example of what he was capable of and how good he was at it. And evidence that even
though much time had passed and the peak of his
career was barely visible in the distance, it would still stand there
forever, visible to all, despite the fact that Dan
Marino never got a ring.
Marino is the reason Im a Dolphins fan.
Warning. Watching this is an act in masochism.
Laces out
The game showed in the thumbnail was the first game I ever remember seeing. Fins-Pats AFC championship game just before the Pats were crushed by 'Fridge' Perry and the '85 Bears in the super bowl.
Looking back, was ‘83 actually/possibly his best chance? I didn’t realize Fulton Walker destroyed our chances that year. The Killer B’s were still a force, and we were coming off a super bowl appearance with “Woodstrock” at the helm. I was too young to know what was happening then (my fanhood started with the 85 season), but maybe a vet can weigh in?
1985/86 season was THE YEAR of great disappointment as the Patriots beat Miami in a monsoon to face the Bears. We all were waiting for the rematch of Marino v the Bear defense, The biggest disappointing season of being a Dolphin fan. A sfor other "whys" for Marina, out and out bad luck
The hard truth is the dolphins stuck with shula way too long. Marino needed to play with a coach that valued defense and wasn't gonna put the entire offense on him. From 86-90 the dolphins didn't even make the playoffs, unacceptable when you have Dan Marino.
Pain