Most Dolphins fans these days can hardly remember the “glory days” of the franchise — it has been nearly five decades since the team’s last championship, nearly four decades since the last Super Bowl appearance and nearly three decades since the team’s last conference championship game appearance.
Oh, right — and the team has stumbled through two decades of quarterback purgatory since the retirement of the man before his time — Hall of Famer Dan Marino. Marino hung up the pads and the Dolphins simply haven’t found the same luster since. And a full generation of Dolphins fans have grown knowing nothing but the worst of times for the Miami Dolphins.
Let’s not forget history. The Dolphins’ franchise history is rich. And Dan Marino was one of the ultimate trailblazers of the 1980s and helped transform the game into what we know and love today.
Don’t take our word for it. Someone has put together a 25 minute highlight reel of all the best throws of Marino’s career.
We’re not crying, you’re crying. This is the standard. This is what the Dolphins are working to find once again. Some of these throws don’t even make sense. The release quickness? The velocity? Half of these throws never slow down — they just keep speeding up until they meet the target.
The Dolphins have had some amazing football players since Marino hung it up. Jason Taylor was a first-ballot Hall of Fame inductee. Zack Thomas should be in soon enough. Cameron Wake logged 98 sacks in ten seasons in South Beach.
But they’ve been missing a player like this, all this time. The looming shadow of Marino has hung over the Dolphins organization for decades, with everyone who has come along since failing to live up to the standard. Which the Dolphins should bear in mind as they look to find their next quarterback. If he’s not capable of being one of the best, the Dolphins should keep looking. They’ve got some stability with Ryan Fitzpatrick back in 2020 — now don’t be afraid to be great. Miami rolled the dice on Marino back in 1983 — he nearly fell out of the 1st-round all together due to a drop off in play during his final season at Pittsburgh and some off the field concerns.
No risk, no reward. Perhaps seeing 25 minutes of Dan Marino lasers is the remind you need to buy into an ambitious move at quarterback for the Dolphins, too!
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