1973 Miami Dolphins

1973 Miami Dolphins season
Head Coach	Don Shula
Home Field	Miami Orange Bowl
Results
Record	12–2
Place	1st AFC East
Playoff Finish	Won Divisional Playoffs (Bengals) 34–16 Won Conference Championship (Raiders) 27–10 Won Super Bowl VIII (Vikings) 24–7
Timeline
Previous Season	Next Season
1972	1974

The 1973 Miami Dolphins season was the team's 8th, and fourth in the National Football League. The team entered the 1973 season as defending Super Bowl champions, and with a 15-game regular season winning streak.

The team won the AFC East, and defeated the Minnesota Vikings in the league's eighth Super Bowl. It was the Dolphins' second-consecutive (and last) Super Bowl victory.

Season Summary

Although the Dolphins were unable to match their 17–0 perfect season of 1972, many sports writers, fans, and Dolphins players themselves felt that the 1973 team was better. While the '72 team faced no competition in the regular season that had a record of better than 8–6, the '73 team played against a much tougher schedule that included games against the Oakland Raiders, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Dallas Cowboys (all playoff teams), plus two games against a resurgent Buffalo Bills squad that featured 2,000-yard rusher O.J. Simpson. Miami finished with a 12–2 regular season, including their opening game victory over the San Francisco 49ers that tied an NFL record with 18 consecutive wins. The Dolphins' streak ended in week two with a 12–7 loss to the Raiders in Berkeley, California.

Just like the last two previous seasons, Miami's offense relied primarily on their rushing attack. Fullback Larry Csonka recorded his third consecutive 1,000 rushing yard season (1,003 yards), while running back Mercury Morris rushed for 954 yards and scored 10 touchdowns. Running back Jim Kiick was also a key contributor, rushing for 257 yards, and catching 27 passes for 208 yards. Quarterback Bob Griese, the AFC's second leading passer, completed only 116 passes for 1,422 yards, but threw about twice as many touchdown passes (17) as interceptions (8), and earned an 84.3 passer rating. Wide receiver Paul Warfield remained the main deep threat on the team, catching 29 passes for 514 yards and 11 touchdowns. Also, the offensive line was strong, once again led by center Jim Langer and right guard Larry Little. Griese, Csonka, Warfield, Langer, and Little would all eventually be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Miami's "No Name Defense" continued to dominate their opponents. Future Hall of Fame linebacker Nick Buoniconti recovered three fumbles and returned one for a touchdown. Safety Dick Anderson led the team with eight interceptions, which he returned for 163 yards and two touchdowns. And safety Jake Scott, the previous season's Super Bowl MVP, had four interceptions and 71 return yards. The Dolphins were still using their "53" defense devised at the beginning of the 1972 season, where Bob Matheson (#53) would be brought in as a fourth linebacker in a 3–4 defense, with Manny Fernandez at nose tackle. Matheson could either rush the quarterback or drop back into coverage.

In 2007, ESPN.com ranked the 1973 Dolphins as the eight-greatest defense in NFL history, noting that the team "held 11 opponents to 14 points or less, setting a record by allowing just 150 points in a 14-game season. Defensive end Bill Stanfill set a Dolphins' sack record that still stands, with 18.5. In the playoffs and Super Bowl, they allowed only 33 points against Cincinnati, Oakland and Minnesota. Stanfill, Manny Fernandez, Hall of Fame middle linebacker Nick Buoniconti, and safeties Dick Anderson (AP Defensive Player of the Year) and Jake Scott were all named to the 1973 All-Pro team.

Offseason

NFL Draft

1973 Miami Dolphins draft picks
Round	Pick	Player	Position	School	Made team?	Notes
2	52	Chuck Bradley	Center	Oregon	N	Placed in IR
3	78	Leon Gray	Tackle	Jackson State	N	Released, played with the New England Patriots
4	104	Bo Rather	Wide receiver	Michigan	Y
5	111	Don Strock	Quarterback	Virginia Tech	Y
5	130	Dave McCurry	Defensive back	Iowa State	N
6	156	*Ed Newman	Guard	Duke	Y
7	160	Kevin Reilly	Linebacker	Villanova	N
7	163	Benny Shepherd	Running back	Arkansas Tech	N
7	178	Willie Hatter	Wide receiver	Northern Illinois	N
7	182	Thomas Smith	Fullback	Miami (FL)	Y
8	208	Archie Pearmon	Defensive end	Northeast Oklahoma	N
9	234	Karl Lorch	Defensive tackle	USC	N
10	260	Ron Fernandes	Defensive end	Eastern Michigan	N
11	286	Chris Kete	Center	Boston University	N
12	312	Mike Mullen	Linebacker	Tulane	N
13	338	Joe Booker	Running back	Miami (OH)	N
14	364	Greg Boyd	Running back	Arizona	N
15	389	Bill Palmer	Tight end	St. Thomas	N
16	416	James Jackson	Defensive end	Norfolk State	N
17	442	Charlie Wade	Wide receiver	Tennessee State	Y
*     = Made roster *  *  Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel

Staff / Coaches

1973 Miami Dolphins final staff
	Front Office President – Joe Robbie Vice president – Don Shula Director of player personnel – Bobby Beathard Head Coaches Head coach – Don Shula Offensive Coaches Offense – Bill McPeak Offensive backs – Carl Taseff Offensive line – Monte Clark			Defensive Coaches Assistant head coach/defense – Bill Arnsparger Defensive line – Mike Scarry Defensive backs – Tom Keane Special Teams Coaches None - N/A Strength and Conditioning None - N/A

Roster

1973 Miami Dolphins final roster
	Quarterbacks 12 Bob Griese 15 Earl Morrall Running backs 22 Mercury Morris 39 Larry Csonka FB 32 Hubert Ginn 21 Jim Kiick 23 Charles Leigh FB 36 Don Nottingham 29 Tom Smith FB Wide receivers 86 Marlin Briscoe 42 Paul Warfield 82 Bo Rather 34 Ron Sellers 81 Howard Twilley Tight ends 80 Marv Fleming 88 Jim Mandich		Offensive linemen 79 Wayne Moore OT 67 Bob Kuechenberg OG 62 Jim Langer C 66 Larry Little OG 73 Norm Evans OT 77 Doug Crusan OT 55 Irv Goode OG 64 Ed Newman OG 76 Willie Young OT Defensive linemen 83 Vern Den Herder DE 75 Manny Fernandez DT 72 Bob Heinz DT 84 Bill Stanfill DE 68 Ron Berger DT 65 Maulty Moore DT 70 Larry Woods DE		Linebackers 59 Doug Swift 85 Nick Buoniconti 57 Mike Kolen 51 Larry Ball 58 Bruce Bannon 53 Bob Matheson 56 Jesse Powell Defensive backs 25 Tim Foley CB 45 Curtis Johnson CB 13 Jake Scott FS 40 Dick Anderson SS 49 Charlie Babb SS 26 Lloyd Mumphord CB 48 Henry Stuckey CB Special teams 1 Garo Yepremian K 20 Larry Seiple P		Reserve lists -- Chuck Bradley C (IR) Practice squad 10 Don Strock QB Rookies in italics 49 Active, 2 Inactive, 1 Practice squad

Preseason

Date	Opponent	Result	Score	Record	Att.	Location	Recap
1	July 27, 1973	vs. College All-Stars	W 14–3	1–0	Soldier Field (Chicago)	54,103	Recap
2	August 4, 1973	Cincinnati Bengals	W 14–13	2–0	Miami Orange Bowl	78,091	Recap
3	August 11, 1973	New Orleans Saints	W 14–13	3–0	Miami Orange Bowl	80,050	Recap
4	August 18, 1973	Chicago Bears	T 9–9	3–0–1	Miami Orange Bowl	78,590	Recap
5	August 24, 1973	Los Angeles Rams	W 17–14	4–0–1	Miami Orange Bowl	78,618	Recap
6	August 31, 1973	at Minnesota Vikings	L 17–20	4–1–1	Metropolitan Stadium	46,619	Recap
7	September 6, 1973	at Dallas Cowboys	L 23–26	4–2–1	Texas Stadium	61,378	Recap

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance	Record
1	September 16	San Francisco	W 21–13	68,275	1-0
2	September 23	at Oakland	L 12–7	74,121	1-1
3	September 30	New England	W 44–23	62,508	2-1
4	October 7	NY Jets	W 31–3	63,850	3-1
5	October 15	at Cleveland	W 17–9	70,070	4-1
6	October 21	Buffalo	W 27–6	65,241	5-1
7	October 28	at New England	W 30–14	57,617	6-1
8	November 4	at NY Jets	W 24–14	57,791	7-1
9	November 11	Baltimore	W 44–0	60,332	8-1
10	November 18	at Buffalo	W 17–0	77,138	9-1
11	November 22	at Dallas	W 14–7	58,089	10-1
12	December 3	Pittsburgh	W 30–26	68,901	11-1
13	December 9	at Baltimore	L 16–3	58,446	11-2
14	December 15	Detroit	W 34–7	53,375	12-2

Game Summaries

Week 1: vs. San Francisco 49ers

Week 1: San Francisco 49ers at Miami Dolphins;– Game summary 1 2 3 4 Total 49ers 3 7 3 0 13 Dolphins 3 3 0 15 21 at Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida Date: September 16 Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT/10:00 a.m. PDT Game weather: 82 °F (28 °C) TV: CBS Pro Football Reference Game information First quarter SF – Bruce Gossett 47 yard field goal, 49ers 3-0. MIA – Garo Yepremian 31 yard field goal, Tied 3-3. Second quarter MIA – Garo Yepremian 53 yard field goal, Dolphins 6-3. SF – Vic Washington 3 yard rush, (Bruce Gossett kick), 49ers 10-6. Third quarter SF – Bruce Gossett 30 yard field goal, 49ers 13-6. Fourth quarter MIA – Paul Warfield 10 yard pass from Bob Griese, (Garo Yepremian kick), Tied 13-13. MIA – Garo Yepremian 53 yard field goal, Dolphins 16-13. MIA – Safety, Curtis Johnson tackled Tom Wittum in end zone, Dolphins 18-13. MIA – Garo Yepremian 22 yard field goal, Dolphins 21-13. Top passers SF – John Brodie – 12/17, 110 yards MIA – Bob Griese – 11/24, 108 yards, TD, 2 INTs Top rushers SF – Vic Washington - 14 rushes, 55 yards, TD MIA – Larry Csonka – 22 rushes, 104 yards Top receivers SF – Vic Washington - 8 receptions, 57 yards MIA – Paul Warfield - 4 receptions, 39 yards, TD

Standings

AFC East
Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA
Miami Dolphins	12	2	0	.857	343	150
Buffalo Bills	9	5	0	.643	259	230
New England Patriots	5	9	0	.357	258	300
New York Jets	4	10	0	.286	240	306
Baltimore Colts	4	10	0	.286	226	341

Postseason

AFC Divisional Playoff

Miami Dolphins 34, Cincinnati Bengals 16 1 2 3 4 Total Bengals 3 13 0 0 16 Dolphins 14 7 10 3 34 at Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida Date: December 23, 1973 Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 78,928 Referee: Bernie Ulman TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy and Al DeRogatis Game information Scoring MIA - Warfield 13 pass from Griese (Yepremian kick) MIA 7-0 CIN - field goal Muhlmann 24 MIA 7-3 MIA - Csonka 1 run (Yepremian kick) MIA 14-3 MIA - Morris 4 run (Yepremian kick) MIA 21-3 CIN - Craig 45 interception return (Muhlmann kick)MIA 21-10 CIN - field goal Muhlmann 46 MIA 21-13 CIN - field goal Muhlmann 10 MIA 21-16 MIA - Mandich 7 pass from Griese (Yepremian kick) MIA 28-16 MIA - field goal Yepremian 50 MIA 31-16 MIA - field goal Yepremian 46 MIA 34-16

The Dolphins outgained Cincinnati in total yards, 400–194, and first downs, 27–11, while also scoring on three of their first four possessions and shutting out the Bengals in the second half. The Dolphins racked up 241 yards on the ground, including 106 from Mercury Morris and 71 from Larry Csonka, while receiver Paul Warfield caught 5 passes for 95 yards and a score.

AFC Championship Game

Miami Dolphins 27, Oakland Raiders 10 1 2 3 4 Total Raiders 0 0 10 0 10 Dolphins 7 7 3 10 27 at Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida Date: December 30, 1973 Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 79,325 Referee: Tommy Bell TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy and Al DeRogatis Game information Scoring MIA - Csonka 11 run (Yepremian kick) MIA 7-0 MIA - Csonka 2 run (Yepremian kick) MIA 14-0 OAK - field goal Blanda 21 MIA 14-3 MIA - field goal Yepremian 42 MIA 17-3 OAK - Siani 25 pass from Stabler (Blanda kick) MIA 17-10 MIA - field goal Yepremian 26 MIA 20-10 MIA - Csonka 2 run (Yepremian kick) MIA 27-10

Running back Larry Csonka led the Dolphins to a victory with 117 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns.Mercury Morris also ran for 86 yards.

Super Bowl VIII

Miami Dolphins 24, Minnesota Vikings 7 1 2 3 4 Total Vikings (NFC) 0 0 0 7 7 Dolphins (AFC) 14 3 7 0 24 at Rice Stadium, Houston, Texas Date: January 13, 1974 Game time: 6:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 71,882 Referee: Ben Dreith TV announcers (CBS): Ray Scott, Pat Summerall and Bart Starr Game information Scoring MIA – TD: Larry Csonka 5 yard run (Garo Yepremian kick) 7–0 MIA MIA – TD: Jim Kiick 1 yard run (Garo Yepremian kick) 14–0 MIA MIA – FG: Garo Yepremian 28 yards 17–0 MIA MIA – TD: Larry Csonka 2 yard run (Garo Yepremian kick) 24–0 MIA MIN – TD: Fran Tarkenton 4 yard run (Fred Cox kick) 24–7 MIA

Awards and honors

• Larry Csonka, Super Bowl Most Valuable Player
• Larry Csonka, Pro Bowl Selection
• Bob Griese, Pro Bowl Selection

External links

• 1973 Miami Dolphins season article at Wikipedia
• Miami Dolphins on Pro Football Reference
• Miami Dolphins on jt-sw.com