1985 Miami Dolphins season

1985 Miami Dolphins season
1985 Miami Dolphins season
Owner	Joe Robbie
Head coach	Don Shula
General manager	Mike Robbie
Home field	Miami Orange Bowl
Results
Record	12–4
Division place	1st AFC East
Playoff finish	Won Divisional Playoffs (vs. Browns) 24–21; Lost AFC Championship (vs. Patriots) 14–31
	← 1984; Dolphins seasons; 1986 →;

The 1985 Miami Dolphins season was the 20th season in franchise history. The club won their fourth consecutive AFC East championship^[1] and appeared in the AFC Championship Game.

Due to Dan Marino's offseason holdout, and an injury to receiver Mark Duper, the Dolphins were only 5–4 through Week 9, and in third place in the AFC East, behind the 7–2 Jets and 6–3 Patriots. Their 220 points scored through Week 9 were fifth in the league,^[2] and 85 points fewer – 9.4 per game – than in 1984 at the same point in the season.^[3]

The Dolphins righted the ship, however, and won their final seven games, including an upset of the then-undefeated Chicago Bears in a Week 13 Monday Night contest. This was the last time until 2021 that the Dolphins had won 7 games in a row. Miami won the division and defeated the AFC Central champion Cleveland Browns 24–21 in their first playoff game. Their season would end, however, with a 31–14 home loss to division rival New England in the AFC Championship Game.

Off-season[]

Quarterback Dan Marino, coming off a record-shattering 1984 season, held out through training camp.^[4] This, and an injury to wide receiver Mark Duper, got the Dolphins out to a slow start.

Draft[]

1985 Miami Dolphins Draft
Round	Selection	Player	Position	College
1	28	Lorenzo Hampton	RB	Florida
3	65	George Little	DT	Iowa
3	83	Alex Moyer	LB	Northwestern
4	91		DB	Texas-El Paso
4	111	Jeff Dellenbach	T	Wisconsin
6	145	George Shorthose	WR	Missouri
6	167	Ron Davenport	FB	Louisville
7	195	Fuad Reveiz	K	Tennessee
8	223	Dan Sharp	TE	Texas Christian
9	251	Adam Hinds	DB	Oklahoma State
10	279	Mike Pendleton	DB	Indiana
11	307	Mike Jones	RB	Tulane
12	335	Ray Noble	DB	California

Personnel[]

Staff[]

**1985 Miami Dolphins staff**

	Front office Owner – Joe Robbie General Manager – Mike Robbie Head coaches Head Coach – Don Shula Offensive coaches Quarterbacks – David Shula Running Backs – Carl Taseff Wide Receivers – David Shula Offensive Line – John Sandusky			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Chuck Studley Defensive Line – Mike Scarry Linebackers – Bob Matheson Secondary – Mel Phillips Special teams coaches Special Teams – Tom Keane Strength and conditioning Strength and Conditioning –

Roster[]

**1985 Miami Dolphins final roster**

	Quarterbacks 13 Dan Marino 10 Don Strock Running backs 34 Woody Bennett 23 Joe Carter 30 Ron Davenport 27 Lorenzo Hampton 22 Tony Nathan 32 Tommy Vigorito Wide receivers 83 Mark Clayton 85 Mark Duper 82 Duriel Harris 88 Vince Heflin 11 Jim Jensen 81 Frank Lockett 89 Nat Moore Tight ends 84 Bruce Hardy 87 Dan Johnson 80 Joe Rose		Offensive linemen 76 Steve Clark G 65 Jeff Dellenbach C 79 Jon Giesler T 74 Cleveland Green T 63 Larry Lee G 72 Ronnie Lee T 57 Dwight Stephenson C 60 Jeff Toews G 61 Roy Foster G Defensive linemen 70 Bill Barnett DE 75 Doug Betters DE 58 Kim Bokamper DE 71 Mike Charles NT 99 George Little DE 91 Mack Moore DE		Linebackers 51 Mark Brown ILB 56 Charles Bowser OLB 53 Jay Brophy 59 Bob Brudzinski OLB 55 Hugh Green OLB 54 Alex Moyer 52 Robin Sendlein OLB 50 Jackie Shipp ILB 96 Sanders Shiver OLB Defensive backs 47 Glenn Blackwood SS 42 Lyle Blackwood 43 Bud Brown FS 49 William Judson CB 40 Mike Kozlowski 44 Paul Lankford CB 28 Don McNeal 18 42 Robert Sowell 29 John Swain 41 Fulton Walker Special teams 4 Reggie Roby P 7 Fuad Reveiz K		Reserve lists 73 Bob Baumhower DT (IR) 64 Ed Newman G (IR) Practice squad Rookies in italics

Regular season[]

Schedule[]

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 8, 1985	at Houston Oilers	L 23–26	47,656
2	September 15, 1985	Indianapolis Colts	W 30–13	53,693
3	September 22, 1985	Kansas City Chiefs	W 31–0	69,791
4	September 29, 1985	at Denver Broncos	W 30–26	73,614
5	October 6, 1985	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 24–20	72,820
6	October 14, 1985	at New York Jets	L 7–23	73,807
7	October 20, 1985	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 41–38	62,335
8	October 27, 1985	at Detroit Lions	L 21–31	75,291
9	November 3, 1985	at New England Patriots	L 13–17	58,811
10	November 10, 1985	New York Jets	W 21–17	73,965
11	November 17, 1985	at Indianapolis Colts	W 34–20	59,666
12	November 24, 1985	at Buffalo Bills	W 23–14	50,474
13	December 2, 1985	Chicago Bears	W 38–24	75,594
14	December 8, 1985	at Green Bay Packers	W 34–24	52,671
15	December 16, 1985	New England Patriots	W 30–27	69,489
16	December 22, 1985	Buffalo Bills	W 28–0	64,811

Week 13[]

Chicago Bears (12–0) at Miami Dolphins (8–4)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bears	7	3	14	0	24
Dolphins	10	21	7	0	38

at Orange Bowl • Miami, Florida

Date: December 2
Game time: 9:00 p.m. EST
Game weather: 76°F • Wind 8
Referee: Gordon McCarter
TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Joe Namath, OJ Simpson
Pro-Football-Reference.com

Game information

Bears

Steve Fuller
11/21, 169 Yds, TD, 2 INT
Walter Payton
23 Rush, 121 Yds
Willie Gault
2 Rec, 79 Yds

Dolphins

Dan Marino
14/27, 270 Yds, 3 TD, INT
Tony Nathan
15 Rush, 74 Yds
Mark Duper
5 Rec, 107 Yds

Miami finished 12–4 in 1985 and, in an epic Monday Night Football showdown on December 2, 1985, handed the previously-undefeated Chicago Bears their only defeat of the season. Several members of the 1972 Dolphins were in attendance at the game.

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	CHI	MIA
1					Dolphins	Moore 33-yard touchdown reception from Marino, Reveiz kick good	0	7
1					Bears	Fuller 1-yard touchdown run, Butler kick good	7	7
1					Dolphins	47-yard field goal by Reveiz	7	10
2					Dolphins	Davenport 1-yard touchdown run, Reveiz kick good	7	17
2					Bears	30-yard field goal by Butler	10	17
2					Dolphins	Davenport 1-yard touchdown run, Reveiz kick good	10	24
2					Dolphins	Moore 6-yard touchdown reception from Marino, Reveiz kick good	10	31
3					Bears	Fuller 1-yard touchdown run, Butler kick good	17	31
4					Dolphins	Clayton 42-yard touchdown reception from Marino, Reveiz kick good	17	38
4					Bears	Margerum 19-yard touchdown reception from Fuller, Butler kick good	24	38
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							24	38

After rallying from a 21–3 third quarter deficit in the divisional playoffs to beat the Cleveland Browns 24–21, many people were looking forward to a rematch with Chicago in Super Bowl XX. The Cinderella New England Patriots, the Dolphins' opponents in the AFC Championship, had different plans. New England forced six turnovers on the way to a 31–14 win – the Patriots' first in Miami since 1966. The Patriots had lost 18 games in a row at the Orange Bowl. In 1969, the Boston Patriots had beaten the Dolphins at Tampa Stadium.

Standings[]

AFC East
view talk	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Miami Dolphins⁽²⁾	12	4	0	.750	6–2	9–3	428	320	W7
New York Jets⁽⁴⁾	11	5	0	.688	6–2	9–3	393	264	W1
New England Patriots⁽⁵⁾	11	5	0	.688	6–2	8–4	362	290	W1
Indianapolis Colts	5	11	0	.313	1–7	2–10	320	386	W2
Buffalo Bills	2	14	0	.125	1–7	2–12	200	381	L6

Final roster[]

**1985 Miami Dolphins final roster**

	Quarterbacks 13 Dan Marino 10 Don Strock Running backs 34 Woody Bennett FB 20 Joe Carter RB 30 Ron Davenport FB 27 Lorenzo Hampton RB 22 Tony Nathan RB 32 Tommy Vigorito RB Wide receivers 83 Mark Clayton 85 Mark Duper 11 Jim Jensen WR/RB/QB 89 Nat Moore Tight ends 84 Bruce Hardy 87 Dan Johnson 80 Joe Rose		Offensive linemen 76 Steve Clark G 65 Jeff Dellenbach C/G 61 Roy Foster G 79 Jon Giesler T 74 Cleveland Green T 63 Larry Lee (American football) G 72 Ronnie Lee G/T 57 Dwight Stephenson C Defensive linemen 75 Doug Betters DE 58 Kim Bokamper DE 71 Mike Charles NT 99 George Little (defensive lineman) DE 71 Mike Charles DE		Linebackers 53 Jay Brophy MLB 51 Mark Brown ILB 59 Bob Brudzinski OLB 55 Hugh Green (American football) OLB 54 Alex Moyer OLB 52 Robin Sendlein ILB 50 Jackie Shipp ILB Defensive backs 47 Glenn Blackwood SS 42 Lyle Blackwood FS 43 Bud Brown SS 49 William Judson CB 40 Mike Kozlowski FS 44 Paul Lankford CB 28 Don McNeal CB 18 DB Special teams 7 Fuad Reveiz K 4 Reggie Roby P		Reserve lists 70 Bill Barnett DE (IR) 73 Bob Baumhower NT (IR) 56 Charles Bowser OLB (IR) 82 Duriel Harris WR (IR) 64 Ed Newman G (IR) 60 Jeff Toews C (IR) Practice squad Rookies in italics 45 active, 6 inactive, 0 practice squad

Player stats[]

Passing[]

Player	Att	Comp	Yds	TD	Int	Rating
Dan Marino	567	336	4137	30	21	84.1

Playoffs[]

AFC Divisional Playoff[]

Miami Dolphins 24, Cleveland Browns 21

	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	7	7	7	0	21
Dolphins	3	0	14	7	24

at Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST
Game weather: 77 °F (25 °C), mostly cloudy
Game attendance: 75,128
Referee: Pat Haggerty
TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui and Bob Trumpy

AFC Championship Game[]

New England Patriots 31, Miami Dolphins 14

	1	2	3	4	Total
Patriots	3	14	7	7	31
Dolphins	0	7	0	7	14

at Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
Game weather: 65 °F (18 °C), rain
Game attendance: 74,978
Referee: Gene Barth
TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen

In an upset, the Patriots converted 6 Dolphins turnovers into 24 points.

Awards and honors[]

Dan Marino, 1985 1st Team All-Pro and AFC Pro Bowl selection
Mark Duper, franchise record, most receiving yards in one game, 217 yards on November 10.^[5]

References[]

^ Numbelivable!, p.105, Michael X. Ferraro and John Veneziano, Triumph Books, Chicago, Illinois, 2007, ISBN 978-1-57243-990-0
^ Pro-Football-Reference: In a single season, in 1985, in the regular season, from team's 1st game to 9th game, sorted by descending Points For
^ Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, in 1984, in the regular season, from team's 1st game to 9th game, sorted by descending Points For
^ Neft, David S.; Cohen, Richard M.; and Korch, Rich The Sports Encyclopedia: Pro Football, 12th Edition, p.506, Martin's Press, August 1994, ISBN 0-312-11073-1
^ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 60

External links[]

[1] Numbelivable!, p.105, Michael X. Ferraro and John Veneziano, Triumph Books, Chicago, Illinois, 2007, ISBN 978-1-57243-990-0

[2] Pro-Football-Reference: In a single season, in 1985, in the regular season, from team's 1st game to 9th game, sorted by descending Points For

[3] Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, in 1984, in the regular season, from team's 1st game to 9th game, sorted by descending Points For

[4] Neft, David S.; Cohen, Richard M.; and Korch, Rich The Sports Encyclopedia: Pro Football, 12th Edition, p.506, Martin's Press, August 1994, ISBN 0-312-11073-1

[5] NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 60

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v t Miami Dolphins
Founded in 1966 Based in Miami Gardens, Florida Headquartered in Davie, Florida
Franchise	Franchise History Seasons Coaches Players First-round draft picks Starting quarterbacks Records Awards Honor roll Training facility Broadcasters
Stadiums	Orange Bowl Hard Rock Stadium
Culture	"Fins" (Jimmy Buffett song) Wayne Huizenga Stephen M. Ross Joe Robbie T. D. Cheerleaders Ace Ventura: Pet Detective "Only Wanna Be with You" (Hootie & the Blowfish song) Ballers
Lore	Perfect season The Sea of Hands Announcerless game Epic in Miami Snowplow Game Clock Play Monday Night Miracle Miracle in Miami
Rivalries	Buffalo Bills Las Vegas Raiders New England Patriots New York Jets Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Division championships (13)	1971 1972 1973 1974 1979 1981 1983 1984 1985 1992 1994 2000 2008
Conference championships (5)	1971 1972 1973 1982 1984
League championships (2)	1972 (VII) 1973 (VIII)
Retired numbers	12 13 39
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League (1970–present) Conference: American Football Conference Division: East Division
Former league affiliation	League: American Football League (1966–1969)

v t Miami Dolphins seasons
1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Bold indicates Super Bowl victory Italics indicates Super Bowl appearance