1982 vs. 1984 Dolphins

[JohnH19]

The Broncos lost to Mark Malone's Steelers but they would have beaten Marino's Dolphins?

That was a bad loss, no question, but I think they looked past the Steelers that year.

The Broncos were a statistically poor 13-3 team finishing 22nd in total offense and 25th in total defense. The 9-7 Steelers were 8th and 5th and handed the 49ers their only loss. It would have been extremely foolish for Denver to look past them. It's highly doubtful that they did.

[Rupert Patrick]

I don't think the 84 Dolphins defense was that terrible; they gave up under 20 points in 10 of 16 regular season games, and were 7th in fewest points allowed. They were not the equal of the 82 Dolphins defense, but they were much better than the Dolphin defenses as the 80's progressed. I think the 84 Dolphins would have won by two touchdowns because of their passing game, maybe 31-17.

[7DnBrnc53]

The Broncos were a statistically poor 13-3 team finishing 22nd in total offense and 25th in total defense. The 9-7 Steelers were 8th and 5th and handed the 49ers their only loss. It would have been extremely foolish for Denver to look past them. It's highly doubtful that they did.

They finished 25th in total yards on defense, but they were fifth against the run. Their low yardage rating overall (and against the pass) may be due to winning five of their games by 17 or more points.

Also, while not rating too high in yards, they were 11th in the league in points scored (353) and second in points surrendered (241). Plus, their defense had 31 INT's and 57 sacks.

[JohnH19]

I doubt they looked past the Steelers.

[TanksAndSpartans]

The '84 team gave up 455 yards in the AFC championship game and 537 in the Super Bowl. Maybe their regular season statistics weren't terrible, but from watching the games, I would say it started around '84 that the defense never seemed to get stops when needed - I can't quantify that though - it's just a perception from watching games. The WoodStrock era defenses seemed to make more plays (even a few memorable ones like A.J. Duhe v.the Jets) and offensively they could run the ball whereas the Marino era teams, well I won't repeat myself. Someone mentioned hating what-ifs, both teams were coached by Shula, etc. I can see that, but I kind of thought it was the point of the thread. One thing I did forget about the Marino era teams was the Bears win to ruin their undefeated season - sadly though I think that may have been the highlight and that team wound up losing to the Pats which prevented a Bears rematch in the SB.

[Bryan]

The '84 team gave up 455 yards in the AFC championship game and 537 in the Super Bowl. Maybe their regular season statistics weren't terrible, but from watching the games, I would say it started around '84 that the defense never seemed to get stops when needed - I can't quantify that though - it's just a perception from watching games. The WoodStrock era defenses seemed to make more plays (even a few memorable ones like A.J. Duhe v.the Jets) and offensively they could run the ball whereas the Marino era teams, well I won't repeat myself. Someone mentioned hating what-ifs, both teams were coached by Shula, etc. I can see that, but I kind of thought it was the point of the thread. One thing I did forget about the Marino era teams was the Bears win to ruin their undefeated season - sadly though I think that may have been the highlight and that team wound up losing to the Pats which prevented a Bears rematch in the SB.

AJ Duhe's deteriorating health in 1984 really affected the defense, as he was their defensive catalyst in 1982-83. I think Betters actually earned some DPOTY honors in 1984, but by the time the postseason rolled around the Dolphins didn't have anyone in their back 7 who could cover. Brudzinski was the only LB who was NFL quality...the other 3 guys were terrible (Brown, Brophy, Bowser). The Niners gained 537 yards from dumping the ball off to RBs being covered by LBs and by Montana running through the areas vacated by the LBs. If ever a defense was set up to be decimated by the WCO, it was the 1984 Dolphins.

To compare the two teams, I could go either way. The 1982 Dolphins were 3 point favorites in the Super Bowl while the 1984 Dolphins were 3 point dogs, but the 1984 Dolphins were facing a stronger opponent. Using the 1985 season as a reference...there is no way the 1982 Dolphins beat the 1985 Bears like the Marino Dolphins did, but I also think the 1982 Dolphins beat the 1985 Patriots in the AFC Championship game that year, unlike the Marino Dolphins.