Dan Marino

Daniel Constantine Marino Jr. (born September 15, 1961 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania of Italian and Polish ancestry) is an American football former quarterback who played for the Miami Dolphins in the National Football League. He holds or has held almost every meaningful NFL passing record and is widely recognized as one of the greatest quarterbacks in football history, despite never winning a Super Bowl.

Early years

Dan attended Pittsburgh Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he also starred in baseball, and won Parade All-American honors in football. He was drafted by the Kansas City Royals baseball team in the 1979 amateur draft, but decided to play college football instead.

Football career

After an excellent high school career, Marino played college ball at the University of Pittsburgh from the 1979 to 1982 seasons, leading the Panthers to a Sugar Bowl triumph over the Georgia Bulldogs in January 1982. The next season (his senior year) was considered a disappointment with regard to the pre-season Heisman Trophy and National Championship hype. His team lost the Cotton Bowl to SMU. Still his college career was impressive. In his final 2 seasons, Marino lead his team to a 22-2 record, and he led the nation in touchdown passes (34) as a junior. Marino left Pitt with 7,905 passing yards and 74 touchdown passes. In 2002, he was voted into the College Football Hall of Fame

With the down season of his last year at Pitt and unsubstantiated rumors of drug abuse, Marino's selection status in the 1983 NFL draft plummeted. Five other quarterbacks, including Hall of Famers Jim Kelly and John Elway, had been taken before Don Shula and the Miami Dolphins grabbed Marino with the 27th pick overall.

Being drafted by the defending AFC Champions placed Marino in an ideal situation, where the strong armed rookie could succeed immediately. He posted a 96.0 passer rating that was a rookie record until broken by Ben Roethslisberger's 98.1 in 2004. He brought Miami the division title in 1983, and would also do so in 1984, 1985, 1992, and 1994. His Pro Bowl rookie year ended in disappointment, as the Dolphins were upset by the Seattle Seahawks in a rainy game full of Dolphin turnovers. Marino looked shaky in that game mostly due to a sprained knee he had suffered three weeks prior versus Houston, causing him to miss the last two regular season games. Those two games would be the last non-strike games he would miss until he tore his Achilles Tendon in 1993, a 145-game non-strike consecutive-game streak in all.

The following season would be Marino's best. He threw for 48 touchdown passes and 5,084 yards, both of which shattered previous records. Neither record would be touched until Peyton Manning topped the touchdown mark with 49 in 2004. He would go on to win the NFL Most Valuable Player award in 1984. The '84 Dolphins scored an NFL record 70 touchdowns and posted a 14-2 record. Marino had another 8 touchdown passes in the post-season, four of which came against his hometown Steelers in the AFC Championship Game. In Super Bowl XIX Marino and the Dolphins met Joe Montana and the 49ers. The Dolphins, who had 74 rush attempts in the previous two weeks, called only 8 handoffs, placing their chances squarely on Marino. Marino was above average, completing 29 of 50 passes for 318 yards and a touchdown. Unfortunately, two of his passes were intercepted deep in 49ers territory and he committed the game's lone fumble. The 38-16 loss would be Marino's only Super Bowl appearance; as was the case for most of his career a sparse running attack and average defense would cost the Dolphins. a Pepsi commercial released in the wake of the game had Montana and Marino talking next to a vending machine. Joe bought a Pepsi each for himself and Dan, then Dan says "Next year... I'm buying." Sadly, he never got the chance.

After the Super Bowl loss, Marino's Dolphins went 12-4. On December 2, 1985 Marino completed 14 of 27 passes for 270 yards and triumphed over the 12-0 Chicago Bears in the highest rated Monday Night Football telecast in history. He also brought the Dolphins back to the AFC Championship game the following year, losing in Miami to New England in another game in which wet conditions made the Dolphins turnover prone. New England intercepted Marino twice and recovered 4 fumbles en route to a 31-14 win over the Dolphins, their first win in the Orange Bowl (Miami's home stadium at the time) since 1966.

With Marino at the helm, the Dolphins were a perennial playoff contender, reaching the post-season in 10 of Marino's 17 seasons. In 1992 he made his final appearance in a Championship Game, losing against arch-rival Jim Kelly and the Buffalo Bills, 29-10. Kelly's Bills knocked Marino out of the playoffs three times between 1990 and 1995. Marino's final win was Miami's first win in a playoff road game in his career, as he led the 37th and final comeback of his pro career in 1999. In the next round on the road, Marino and the Dolphins rolled over and died in a 62-7 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Marino decided to retire with that season, after being ungraciously pushed out of Miami by new coach Dave Wannstedt, a protege of Jimmy Johnson, and declining offers from Minnesota and his hometown of Pittsburgh.

During his professional career (1983-1999) in Miami he was one of the most skilled and revered quarterbacks in the game. He was known for having the quickest release in the sport, throwing dead-on 'bullets', and completing the most miraculous passes; often between defenders. Also, despite the fact that he was not known for his scrambling ability (he averaged less then 1 yard per carry on his 301 career rushing attempts), Marino possessed an uncanny awareness in the pocket, often sliding a step or two to avoid the pass rush. He has the second most fourth quarter comebacks (37) in the history of the NFL, and second most victories (147, John Elway is first in both categories). He was the 1994 NFL Comeback Player of the Year after having a Pro Bowl season when he returned from a season ending achilles tendon injury at Cleveland in 1993. He was selected to play in nine Pro Bowls (1983-87, 1991-92, 1994-95), seven times as a starter, but due to injuries he only played in two of the games (1984, 1992).

NFL records set by Dan Marino

Most Attempts, Career: 8,358
Most Completions, Career: 4,967
Most Yards Passing, Career: 61,361
Most Touchdown Passes, Career: 420
Most Passing Yards, Season: 5,084 in 1984
Most Games, 400 or more Yards Passing, Career: 13
Most Games, 400 or more Yards Passing, Season: 4 in 1984
Most Games, 300 or more Yards Passing, Career: 60
Most Seasons, 3,000 or more Yards Passing: 13 (1984-92, 1994-95, 1997-98)
Most Consecutive Seasons, 3,000 or more Yards Passing: 9 (1984-92)
Most Games, Four or more Touchdown Passes, Career: 21
Most Games, Four or more Touchdown Passes, Season: 6 in 1984
Most Consecutive Games, Four or more Touchdown Passes: 4 in 1984
Lowest Percentage, Passes Intercepted, Rookie Season: 2.03 in 1983 (296-6)
Most Seasons Leading League, Attempts: 5 (1984, 1986, 1988, 1992, 1997)
Most Seasons Leading League, Completions: 6 (1984-86, 1988, 1992, 1997)
Most Seasons, 40 or more Touchdown Passes: 2 (1984, 1986)
Most Seasons, 20 or more Touchdown Passes: 13 (1983-92, 1994-95, 1998)
Most Consecutive Seasons, 20 or more Touchdown Passes: 10 (1983-92)
100 TD Passes in Fewest Amount of Games to Start Career: 44 (9/7/86 at San Diego)
200 TD passes in Fewest Amount of Games to Start Career: 89 (9/17/89 at New England)
300 TD passes in Fewest Amount of Games to Start Career: 157 (9/4/94 vs. New England)

NFL records tied for

Most Seasons Leading League, Yards Gained: 5 (1984-86, 1988, 1992) with Sonny Jurgensen (Philadelphia, 1961-62; Washington, 1966-67, 1969)
Most Consecutive Seasons Leading League, Completions: 3 (1984-86) with George Blanda (Houston, 1963-65)
Most Consecutive Games, 400 or more Yards Passing: 2 (1984) with Dan Fouts (San Diego, 1982) and Phil Simms (N.Y. Giants, 1985)
Most Seasons, 4000 or more Yards Passing: (1984-86, 1988, 1992, 1994) with Peyton Manning (Indianapolis, 1999-2004)

Additional statistics

Regular Season:

Named NFL Most Valuable Player (1984)
Played 242 games, starting 240 of them
Career completion percentage of 59.4%
Career passing efficiency rating is 86.4
Threw 252 interceptions in his career
First QB in NFL history to have six 4,000-yard seasons (1984-86, 1988, 1992, 1994)
Only QB in NFL history to pass for 5,000 or more yards in a single season (5,084 in 1984)
Led 37 fourth-quarter comeback victories, second only to John Elway.
Holds Dolphins team record for most seasons played, 17.
Had 116 wins under Don Shula – the most by a head coach - quarterback combination in NFL history.
Won the AFC Offensive Player of the Week honor 18 times in the regular season (and 20 times overall, including playoffs).
Started 240 Regular Season Games and Held a 147-93 record as a starter ( Second to John Elway's NFL Best 148-82-1 Regular Season Record )
Played in 18 Playoff Games and Held an 8-10 Record in the Playoffs
One of only six quarterbacks in NFL history that have achieved two consecutive (back-to-back) 30-touchdown passing seasons at least one time in their careers (the others are Steve Bartkowski, Brett Favre, Dan Fouts, Jeff Garcia, and Y. A. Tittle).

Playoffs:

Passed for 4,510 yards over career in playoff games
Threw at least one touchdown pass in 16 of his 18 playoff contests, throwing a TD pass in his first 13 postseason contests.

Life after football

On Sunday, September 17 2000, at halftime of the Dolphins-Baltimore Ravens game at Pro Player Stadium, Dan Marino’s jersey number, 13, was retired. The only other Dolphins jersey number retired at the time was 12, Bob Griese. Since then 39, Larry Csonka, has been retired as well. Marino joined the Dolphins Honor Roll the same day. In a year of accolades from the franchise he led so long and so well, the Dolphins also installed a life-size bronze statue of Marino at Pro Player Stadium (now Dolphin Stadium) and renamed Stadium Street, Dan Marino Boulevard.

In 2003, Marino was honored for his outstanding NCAA career at Pitt with an induction into the College Football Hall of Fame.

In early 2004, Dan Marino briefly returned to the Miami Dolphins as Senior Vice President of Football Operations, but resigned from the newly-created position only three weeks later, saying that the role was not in the best interest of either his family or the Dolphin organization.

Dan Marino was a first-ballot selection to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2005. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame on August 7 2005 and was introduced by his oldest son, Daniel. During his induction speech, Dan threw "one last pass" to former teammate Mark Clayton, who was sitting in the audience.

Presently, he lives with his wife, Claire, and six (four by birth, and two by adoption) children in Weston, Florida.

During the football season he is a commentator for both CBS's The NFL Today show and HBO's Inside the NFL.

He also acted in the 1994 comedy Pet Detective alongside Jim Carrey and Courteney Cox, as well as made a cameo appearance in the Adam Sandler film Little Nicky where he asks Satan for a Super Bowl ring. He even guest-starred as himself in The Simpsons episode Sunday, Cruddy Sunday (first aired January 31 1999). The music world marked another appearance for Marino, when he featured in a video by Hootie and the Blowfish.

Dan Marino Foundation

The Dan Marino Foundation, was established in 1992 by Marino and his wife, Claire, after their son, Michael, was diagnosed with autism. The foundation has distributed over $7 million to research, services and treatment programs serving children with neurodevelopment disabilities. The Dan Marino Center, which opened in 1995 along with the Miami Children's Hospital, is an integrated neurodevelopmental center specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of children at risk for developmental and psychological problems. The center saw more than 48,000 children last year alone.

Marino has teamed with other celebrities to raise awareness about autistic spectrum disorders, including fellow NFL great Doug Flutie, whose son also has an autism diagnosis.

On November 7, 2005, the National Basketball Association's Miami Heat honored Marino's charitable works and recognized his service to South Florida with a halftime tribute, including a large donation to the Marino Foundation. Though a Heat jersey with his name and #13 was unveiled, this did not constitute retirement of his number by the Heat.^*

Clock!! Clock!!

One of the most storied pieces of Marino folklore is The Clock Play, a classic piece of misdirection. The date was November 27 1994. The Dolphins were playing the New York Jets at Giants Stadium, and weren't doing too well; in fact they were whitewashed the entire first half. In a classic game of two halves, however, Marino ran riot in the second half, bringing the score back to within three points of the Jets at 21-24 on the back of three touchdown passes to Mark Ingram. The game came down to a 1st and Goal situation, with 0:22 left in the final quarter. Marino approached the line of scrimmage, and shouted "Clock!! Clock!!", miming that he intended to spike the ball and stop the clock at the expense of a down. The Miami offensive line just stood there relaxed, instead of readying themselves for a play; the Jets' defense switched off, and did the same. The bait had been swallowed whole. Instead of spiking the ball, Marino took the snap and blasted a fourth touchdown pass to Ingram, who had breezed past the still-asleep Jets cornerback Aaron Glenn. Stitch on the extra point kick, and the result was 28-24 in favor of the Dolphins.

External links

Pro Football Hall of Fame: Member profile
College Football Hall of Fame: Member profile
Official site
The Dan Marino Foundation
Marino Raises Awareness Of Autism Tara Murphy, Forbes (December 8 2005)
Career Stats

Dan Marino | Dan Marino | Dan Marino

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