NFL franchise story

Miami Dolphins

Miami reached perfection under Don Shula, then spent seventeen seasons inside Dan Marino's passing brilliance before a modern speed-based offense revived the franchise's imagination.

Every era · The defining players · Five essential games

The franchise timeline

Every era of the Miami Dolphins.

Move through the franchise chronologically. The jerseys identify each chapter’s central cast, and every card opens the complete story of that era.

Historical reference: Miami Dolphins official NFL team page ↗

The beginning

Franchise era

1966—1969

Bob Griese

Larry Little

Nick Buoniconti

A young franchise waits for Shula

The expansion Dolphins

Miami's difficult opening seasons supplied several core pieces before the league's winningest coach arrived.

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Chapter 01

1966—1969

Franchise era

1970—1974

Bob Griese

Larry Csonka

Paul Warfield

Three straight Super Bowls and the only perfect season

Perfection

Shula built a disciplined, adaptable powerhouse that went 17–0 in 1972 and repeated as champion the next season.

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Chapter 02

1970—1974

Franchise era

1975—1982

Bob Griese

Nat Moore

A.J. Duhe

The Killer B's defense returns Miami to the Super Bowl

The bridge to Marino

Miami remained a regular contender and rode its defense through the strike-shortened 1982 postseason before drafting its next defining quarterback.

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Chapter 03

1975—1982

Franchise era

1983—1999

Dan Marino

Mark Clayton

Mark Duper

The quickest release in football rewrites passing

The Marino years

Marino shattered records immediately and kept Miami relevant for seventeen seasons, though his lone Super Bowl came in year two.

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Chapter 04

1983—1999

Franchise era

2000—2015

Jason Taylor

Zach Thomas

Ricky Williams

Defense and the Wildcat fill a quarterback vacuum

Life after Marino

Elite defenders and brief offensive revivals produced occasional playoff teams without a lasting answer at quarterback.

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Chapter 05

2000—2015

Franchise era

2016—present

Tua Tagovailoa

Tyreek Hill

Jaylen Waddle

Tua, Hill and Waddle stretch every blade of grass

The speed rebuild

Miami accumulated draft capital, built the league's fastest skill group and returned to the playoffs behind Mike McDaniel's motion-heavy offense.

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Chapter 06

2016—present

Present day

The essential watchlist

Five Miami Dolphins games to start with.

Curated from the franchise’s defining eras, championship stakes and the games that still carry its story.

#01 · Conference Championship

Conference Championship

Chargers vs Dolphins

Jan 2, 1982

#02 · Super Bowl

WASHINGTON

Miami Dolphins vs Washington

1973-01-14

#03 · Super Bowl

WASHINGTON

Miami Dolphins vs Washington

1983-01-30

#04 · Super Bowl

Miami Dolphins vs San Francisco 49ers

1985-01-20

#05 · Wild Card

Indianapolis Colts vs Miami Dolphins

2000-12-30

Season history

Every season

61 seasons · newest first

Game archive

Latest games

993 total · loaded 10 at a time