1972 Dolphins 48 Years Later

Owner: Joe Robbie From July 7, 1916 – January 7, 1990 (Died at age 73)
Head Coach: Don Shula From January 4, 1930 – May 4, 2020 (Died at age 90)
OC: Howard Schnellenberger Born March 16, 1934 (age 86)
DC: Bill Arnsparger From December 16, 1926 – July 17, 2015 (Died at age 88)

1972 Offensive Starters

QB Bob Griese Born: February 3, 1945 (age 75)
QB Earl Morrall+ From May 17, 1934 -April 25, 2014 (Died at age 79)
RB Mercury Morris* Born January 5, 1947 (age 73)
FB Larry Csonka* Born December 25, 1946 (age 73)
WR Howard Twilley Born December 25, 1943 (age 76)
WR Paul Warfield* Born November 28, 1942 (age 77)
TE Marv Fleming Born January 2, 1942 (age 78)
LT Doug Crusan Born July 26, 1946 (age 73)
LG Bob Kuechenberg From October 14, 1947-January 12, 2019 (Died at age 71)
C Jim Langer From May 16, 1948-August 29, 2019 (Died at age 71)
RG Larry Little*+ Born November 2, 1945 (age 74)
RT Norm Evans* Born September 28, 1942 (age 77)

1972 Defensive Starters

LDE Vern Den Herder Born November 28, 1948 (age 71)
LDT Manny Fernandez Born July 3, 1946 (age 73)
RDT Bob Heinz Born July 25, 1947 (age 72)
RDE Bill Stanfill*+ From January 13, 1947-November 10, 2016 (Died at age 69)
LLB Doug Swift Born October 24, 1948 (age 71)
MLB Nick Buoniconti* From December 15, 1940-July 30, 2019 (Died at age 78)
RLB Mike Kolen Born January 31, 1948 (age 72)
LCB Tim Foley Born January 22, 1948 (age 72)
RCB Curtis Johnson Born June 22, 1948 (age 71)
SS Dick Anderson*+ Born February 10, 1946 (age 74)
FS Jake Scott* Born July 20, 1945 (age 74)

Special Teams

K Garo Yepremian From June 2, 1944-May 15, 2015 (Died at age 70)
P Larry Seiple Born February 14, 1945 (age 75)

Going Through Adversity

During the 1972 season, Bob Griese’s ankle was broken in Week 5 as he was sacked by San Diego Chargers defensive tackle Ron East and defensive end Deacon Jones.

Earl Morrall replaced the injured Bob Griese for the Dolphins during the team’s October 15 win over the San Diego Chargers. The victory gave Miami a 5-0 record, with Morrall building on that win to lead the team to the first undefeated regular season in the NFL since 1942 and only undefeated season ever, starting 11 out of 17 games that year. After notching a win in the team’s first playoff game against the Cleveland Browns, Morrall struggled against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship game, leading to the return of Griese.

Griese relieved Morrall for the second half of the AFC Championship game versus the Pittsburgh Steelers and then started for Miami in Super Bowl VII. On the ground, running backs Larry Csonka and Mercury Morris became the first teammates to each rush for 1,000 yards in a season. Paul Warfield led the receivers, averaging over 20 yards per catch on 29 receptions. The offensive line included future Hall of Fame members Jim Langer and Larry Little and Pro Bowler Norm Evans.