1983 Miami Dolphins season

1983 Miami Dolphins season
Head coach	Don Shula
Owner	Joe Robbie
Home field	Orange Bowl
Results
Record	12–4
Division place	1st AFC East
Playoff finish	Lost AFC Divisional Playoff

The 1983 season was the 17th season in football for the Miami Dolphins and they sought to return to the Super Bowl after losing to the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl XVII. It was also a turning point in the team's history, as in the 1983 NFL Draft a young quarterback slipped to deep in the opening round, being passed over by such teams as division rivals New York who drafted Ken O'Brien and New England who drafted Tony Eason. With the 27th pick, the Dolphins decided to take a chance on Dan Marino. In the draft's eighth round the Dolphins also selected receiver Mark Clayton.

David Woodley started the team's first five games but despite wins over Buffalo, New England, and Kansas City the offense didn't move to Don Shula's liking so in Week Six hosting the Bills the rookie Marino started. Marino had completed two touchdown throws in relief of Woodley in a 27–14 loss to the Raiders and then replaced Woodley during a 17–7 loss to the Saints with a touchdown and an interception, so the game against Buffalo was the third of his career but his first start. The game proved to be a wild affair as Robb Riddick of the Bills fumbled the opening kickoff at their 17 but Marino was intercepted by Steve Freeman on the next play. The Bills clawed to a 14–7 halftime lead but the Dolphins behind Marino stayed toe to toe as Marino threw for 370 yards and four touchdowns while handing off to Mark Clayton on an option pass for a touchdown to Mark Duper. The Bills tied the game in the final seconds and two Uwe von Schamann field goal attempts missed before Joe Danelo ended the game in a 38–35 Bills win.

Despite the loss Marino's performance cemented his role as the team's starter, and the Dolphins raced to win nine of their last ten games. Marino finished with 2,210 passing yards, 20 touchdowns, and six interceptions. With the division wrapped up following a 26–17 win over the Oilers at the Astrodome Marino sat for the final two games of the season as Don Strock quarterbacked the Dolphins to wins over the Falcons and Jets.

Offseason

NFL draft

1983 Miami Dolphins draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	27	Dan Marino * ^†	Quarterback	Pittsburgh
2	55	Mike Charles	Defensive tackle	Syracuse
3	76	Charles Benson	Defensive end	Baylor
6	167	Reggie Roby *	Punter	Iowa
7	195	Keith Woetzel	Linebacker	Rutgers
8	223	Mark Clayton *	Wide receiver	Louisville
9	250	Mark Brown	Linebacker	Purdue
10	278	Anthony Reed	Running back	South Carolina State
11	306	Joe Lukens	Guard	Ohio State
12	334	Anthony Carter *	Wide receiver	Michigan
Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

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Personnel

Staff

1983 Miami Dolphins staff
	Front office President – Joe Robbie Executive Vice President/General Manager – Mike Robbie Vice President – Don Shula Director of Player Personnel – Chuck Connor Director of Pro Scouting – Charley Winner Head coaches Head Coach – Don Shula Assistant Head Coach – Bill Arnsparger Offensive coaches Offensive Backs – Carl Taseff Receivers – David Shula Offensive Line – John Sandusky			Defensive coaches Defense – Bill Arnsparger Defensive Line/Run Defense – Mike Scarry Defensive Backs – Tom Keane Special teams coaches Special Teams – Bob Matheson Punting – Tom Keane Strength and conditioning Strength and Flexibility – Junior Wade

Roster

1983 Miami Dolphins roster
	Quarterbacks 13 Dan Marino 10 Don Strock 16 David Woodley Running backs 34 Woody Bennett 37 Andra Franklin 31 Eddie Hill 22 Tony Nathan 20 David Overstreet 32 Tommy Vigorito Wide receivers 81 Jimmy Cefalo 83 Mark Clayton 85 Mark Duper 82 Duriel Harris 88 Vince Heflin 11 Jim Jensen 89 Nat Moore		Tight ends 84 Bruce Hardy 87 Dan Johnson 80 Joe Rose Offensive linemen 63 Mark Dennard 61 Roy Foster 74 Cleveland Green 79 Jon Giesler 67 Bob Kuechenberg 68 Eric Laakso 64 Ed Newman 57 Dwight Stephenson 60 Jeff Toews		Defensive linemen 70 Bill Barnett 73 Bob Baumhower 78 Charles Benson 75 Doug Betters 58 Kim Bokamper 71 Mike Charles 76 Steve Clark Linebackers 51 Mark Brown 56 Charles Bowser 59 Bob Brudzinski 77 A. J. Duhe 55 Earnest Rhone 52 Terry Tautolo 54 Rodell Thomas 52 Emmett Tilley		Defensive backs 47 Glenn Blackwood 42 Lyle Blackwood 49 William Judson 40 Mike Kozlowski 44 Paul Lankford 48 Gerald Small 45 Robert Sowell 41 Fulton Walker Special teams 4 Reggie Roby P 5 Uwe von Schamann K Rookies in italics

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Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance	Notes
1	September 4, 1983	at Buffalo Bills	W 12–0	78,715
2	September 11, 1983	New England Patriots	W 34–24	59,343
3	September 19, 1983	at Los Angeles Raiders	L 27–14	57,796	Dan Marino saw his first NFL action, throwing for 90 yards and two touchdowns
4	September 25, 1983	Kansas City Chiefs	W 14–6	50,785
5	October 2, 1983	at New Orleans Saints	L 17–7	66,489
6	October 9, 1983	Buffalo Bills	L 38–35	59,948	Marino made his first career start
7	October 16, 1983	at New York Jets	W 32–14	58,615	Marino's first career win
8	October 23, 1983	at Baltimore Colts	W 21–7	32,343	Marino's first trip to Baltimore's Memorial Stadium
9	October 30, 1983	Los Angeles Rams	W 30–14	72,175
10	November 6, 1983	at San Francisco 49ers	W 20–17	57,832
11	November 13, 1983	at New England Patriots	L 17–6	60,771
12	November 20, 1983	Baltimore Colts	W 37–0	54,482
13	November 28, 1983	Cincinnati Bengals	W 38–14	74,506
14	December 4, 1983	at Houston Oilers	W 24–17	39,434
15	December 10, 1983	Atlanta Falcons	W 31–24	56,725
16	December 16, 1983	New York Jets	W 34–14	59,975

Game summaries

Week 1

1 2 3 4 Total • Dolphins 0 6 3 3 12 Bills 0 0 0 0 0 Date: September 4 Location: Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, NY Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 78,715 Game weather: 72°F; wind 12

Scoring summary Q2 MIA von Schamann 33 yard field goal MIA 3–0 Q2 MIA von Schamann 23 yard field goal MIA 6–0 Q3 MIA von Schamann 36 yard field goal MIA 9–0 Q4 MIA von Schamann 50 yard field goal MIA 12–0

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Standings

AFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Miami Dolphins^(2)	12	4	0	.750	6–2	9–3	389	250	W5
New England Patriots	8	8	0	.500	4–4	6–6	274	289	L1
Buffalo Bills	8	8	0	.500	4–4	7–5	283	351	L2
Baltimore Colts	7	9	0	.438	3–5	5–9	264	354	W1
New York Jets	7	9	0	.438	3–5	4–8	313	331	L2

Player stats

Passing

Player	Att	Comp	Yds	TD	INT	Rating
Dan Marino	296	173	2210	20	6	96.0

Postseason

AFC Divisional Playoff

Seattle Seahawks 27, Miami Dolphins 20

	1	2	3	4	Total
Seahawks	0	7	7	13	27
Dolphins	0	13	0	7	20

at Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

• Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST
• Game weather: 51 °F (11 °C), light rain
• Game attendance: 71,032
• Referee: Fred Wyant
• TV announcers (NBC): Marv Albert and Bob Trumpy

The Seahawks converted three turnovers in the second half into 13 points, while running back Curt Warner rushed for 113 yards and 2 touchdowns. Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino threw two touchdown passes in the second quarter: A 19-yard pass to Johnson and a 32-yard pass to wide receiver Mark Duper. Seattle's only score in the first half was quarterback Dave Krieg's 6-yard touchdown pass to running back Cullen Bryant. In the third quarter, a fumble led to Warner's 1-yard touchdown. A fourth quarter interception from Marino then led to Norm Johnson's 27-yard field goal to give Seattle a 17–13 lead. After the Dolphins regained the lead off running back Woody Bennett's 3-yard touchdown, Seattle responded with Warner's 2-yard touchdown. On the ensuing kickoff, Miami returner Fulton Walker fumbled, setting up Norm Johnson's 37-yard field goal. Barely enough time remained for the Dolphins to tie the game, but Fulton Walker fumbled the next kickoff as well, which sealed the game for the Seahawks.

References

1. "1983 Miami Dolphins draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
2. "1983 Miami Dolphins starters and roster". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
3. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-Jan-16.

External links

• 1983 Miami Dolphins at Pro-Football-Reference.com