1979 Miami Dolphins season

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

1979 Miami Dolphins season
OwnerJoe Robbie
Head coachDon Shula
General managerMike Robbie
Home fieldMiami Orange Bowl
Results
Record10–6
Division place1st AFC East
Playoff finishLost Divisional Playoffs (at Steelers) 14–34
The Dolphins playing against the Oakland Raiders at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in 1979

The 1979 Miami Dolphins season was the franchise's 10th season in the National Football League, the 14th overall, and the 10th under head coach Don Shula. Prior to the start of the season, the Dolphins re-signed Larry Csonka who left to join the WFL after the 1974 season. Despite struggles from Bob Griese all year, the Dolphins finished 10-6 and won their first division title in five years. Among the season highlights were the Dolphins' 19th and 20th consecutive wins over the Buffalo Bills. For the entire decade of the 1970s (1970–79), the Dolphins hold a perfect 20-0 record over the Bills, which contributed to O. J. Simpson never seeing any postseason success in his career. In the Divisional Playoffs, the Dolphins were no match for the Pittsburgh Steelers who jumped out to a 20–0 lead in the 1st Quarter to win 34-14 on their way to their second straight Super Bowl title.

Offseason[]

NFL draft[]

Main article: 1979 NFL draft
1979 Miami Dolphins draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 24 Jon Giesler  Offensive tackle Michigan
2 53 Jeff Toews  Guard Washington
3 61 Tony Nathan *  Running back Alabama
3 63 Mel Land  Linebacker Michigan State
3 65 Ronnie Lee  Offensive tackle Baylor
4 107 Steve Howell  Fullback Baylor
5 134 Don Bessillieu  Defensive back Georgia Tech
6 162 Steve Lindquist  Guard Nebraska
7 189 Uwe von Schamann  Placekicker Oklahoma
8 206 Jeff Groth  Wide receiver Bowling Green
8 215 Glenn Blackwood  Defensive back Texas
9 244 Jeff Weston  Offensive tackle Notre Dame
10 258 Jerome Stanton  Defensive back Michigan State
10 272 Mike Kozlowski  Defensive back Colorado
11 299 Mike Blanton  Defensive end Georgia Tech
12 327 Larry Fortner  Quarterback Miami (OH)
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[1]

Personnel[]

Staff[]

1979 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

Head coaches

  • Head Coach – Don Shula

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches
  • Assistant Head Coach/Defense – Bill Arnsparger
  • Defensive Line/Run Defense – Mike Scarry
  • Defensive Backs – Tom Keane

Special teams coaches

  • Special Teams – Steve Crosby, Carl Taseff
  • Punting – Tom Keane


Roster[]

1979 Miami Dolphins final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

  • 39 Larry Csonka
  • 27 Gary Davis
  • 38 Steve Howell FB
  • 22 Tony Nathan
  • 24 Delvin Williams

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad



Rookies in italics

Regular season[]

Schedule[]

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap
1 September 2 at Buffalo Bills W 9–7 1–0 Rich Stadium Recap
2 September 9 Seattle Seahawks W 19–10 2–0 Miami Orange Bowl Recap
3 September 16 at Minnesota Vikings W 27–12 3–0 Metropolitan Stadium Recap
4 September 23 Chicago Bears W 31–16 4–0 Miami Orange Bowl Recap
5 September 30 at New York Jets L 27–33 4–1 Shea Stadium Recap
6 October 8 at Oakland Raiders L 3–13 4–2 Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Recap
7 October 14 Buffalo Bills W 17–7 5–2 Miami Orange Bowl Recap
8 October 21 at New England Patriots L 13–28 5–3 Schaefer Stadium Recap
9 October 28 Green Bay Packers W 27–7 6–3 Miami Orange Bowl Recap
10 November 5 Houston Oilers L 6–9 6–4 Miami Orange Bowl Recap
11 November 11 Baltimore Colts W 19–0 7–4 Miami Orange Bowl Recap
12 November 18 at Cleveland Browns L 24–30 (OT) 7–5 Cleveland Stadium Recap
13 November 25 at Baltimore Colts W 28–24 8–5 Memorial Stadium Recap
14 November 29 New England Patriots W 39–24 9–5 Miami Orange Bowl Recap
15 December 9 at Detroit Lions W 28–10 10–5 Pontiac Silverdome Recap
16 December 15 New York Jets L 24–27 10–6 Miami Orange Bowl Recap

[2]

Standings[]

AFC East
  • view
  • talk
 W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Miami Dolphins(3) 10 6 0 .625 5–3 6–6 341 257 L1
New England Patriots 9 7 0 .563 4–4 6–6 411 326 W1
New York Jets 8 8 0 .500 4–4 5–7 337 383 W3
Buffalo Bills 7 9 0 .438 4–4 5–7 268 279 L3
Baltimore Colts 5 11 0 .313 3–5 4–10 271 351 W1

Playoffs[]

AFC Divisional Playoff: at Pittsburgh Steelers[]

1 2 34Total
Dolphins 0 0 7714
Steelers 20 0 7734

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Date: Sunday December 30, 1979
  • Game time: 12:30 pm EST
  • Game attendance: 50,214
  • Referee: Cal Lepore
  • TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui (play by play), John Brodie (color commentator)

Awards and honors[]

Larry Csonka returned to the Dolphins in 1979 for one last season before retiring, after leaving in 1975 for the World Football League and spending the next three seasons after with the New York Giants. He led the team with 837 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns, in addition to one receiving touchdown. His return led to him being named the NFL Comeback Player of the Year.

References[]

  1. ^ "1979 Miami Dolphins draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 20, 2014.
  2. ^ "1979 Miami Dolphins".

External links[]

Retrieved from ""