List of Miami Dolphins seasons

Last updated

This is a list of seasons completed by the National Football League (NFL)'s Miami Dolphins, an American football franchise based in the Miami metropolitan area. The list documents the season-by-season records of the Dolphins franchise from 1966 to present, including postseason records, and league awards for individual players or head coaches.

Contents

Although the Miami Dolphins were not successful before joining the NFL, from 1970 when they played their first season after the AFL–NFL merger until 2001 they were one of the most successful teams in the league, playing in the postseason on 22 occasions over those 32 years, winning 335 and tying two of 527 games for an overall win percentage of 63.75, and suffering a mere two losing seasons out of 32. Early in this period the Dolphins won their only two Super Bowls in consecutive seasons (becoming the second team to do so in the Super Bowl era), in the process achieving the only modern-day perfect season in any major professional sports league during only their third year in the NFL. Much of this success was orchestrated by coach Don Shula who joined the team in 1970 and stayed with them until his retirement in 1995.

After Shula retired in 1995, the Dolphins remained a force for six years under successors Jimmy Johnson and Dave Wannstedt, but since 2002 and especially since 2004 have fallen on harder times, reaching the postseason only twice in the eighteen seasons since, and during the mid-2000s, briefly intensifying the Dolphins-Patriots rivalry, when Nick Saban, a former Bill Belichick assistant, was hired as the Dolphins head coach in 2005; Saban spent two seasons as the head coach of the dolphins before leaving for Alabama.In 2007, they narrowly avoided an imperfect season by beating the Baltimore Ravens for their first and only win of the year. The next year, the Dolphins became the first team in NFL history to win their division following a 1–15 season; until 2020, it was the last time when the AFC East was not won by the New England Patriots. Since 2000 (the last season they won a playoff game), the Dolphins have made the postseason three times, but never progressed past the Wild Card round.

For complete team history, see History of the Miami Dolphins.

Seasons

Super Bowl champion Conference championDivision championWild Card berth One-game playoff berth
Season Team Regular season [1] Postseason AwardsHead coach
FinishWLT
American Football League (Eastern Division)(1966–69)
1966 1966 5th3110 George Wilson
1967 1967 4th4100
1968 1968 3rd581
1969 1969 5th3101
National Football League (AFC East Division)(1970–present)
1970 1970 2nd1040Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Raiders) 14–21 Don Shula
1971 1971 1st1031Won Divisional Playoffs (at Chiefs) 27–24 (2 OT)
Won AFC Championship (Colts) 21–0
Lost Super Bowl VI (vs. Cowboys) 3–24
1972 1972 1st1400Won Divisional Playoffs (Browns) 20–14
Won AFC Championship (at Steelers) 21–17
Won Super Bowl VII (1) (vs. Redskins) 14–7
Don Shula (COY)
Jake Scott (SB MVP)
Earl Morrall (CBPOY)
1973 1973 1st1220Won Divisional Playoffs (Bengals) 34–16
Won AFC Championship (Raiders) 27–10
Won Super Bowl VIII (2) (vs. Vikings) 24–7
Dick Anderson (DPOY)
Larry Csonka (SB MVP)
Garo Yepremian (PB MVP)
1974 1974 1st1130Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Raiders) 26–28
1975 1975 2nd1040
1976 1976 3rd680
1977 1977 2nd1040 Bob Griese (Bell Awd)
A. J. Duhe (DROY)
1978 1978 2nd1150Lost Wild Card Playoffs (Oilers) 9–17
1979 1979 1st1060Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Steelers) 14–34 Larry Csonka (CBPOY)
1980 1980 3rd880
1981 1981 1st1141Lost Divisional Playoffs (Chargers) 38–41 (OT)
1982 1982 2nd1720Won First Round Playoffs (Patriots) 28–13
Won Second Round Playoffs (Chargers) 34–13
Won AFC Championship (Jets) 14–0
Lost Super Bowl XVII (vs. Redskins) 17–27
1983 1983 1st1240Lost Divisional Playoffs (Seahawks) 20–27 Doug Betters (DPOY)
1984 1984 1st1420Won Divisional Playoffs (Seahawks) 31–10
Won AFC Championship (Steelers) 45–28
Lost Super Bowl XIX (vs. 49ers) 16–38
Dan Marino (MVP, OPOY)
1985 1985 1st1240Won Divisional Playoffs (Browns) 24–21
Lost AFC Championship (Patriots) 14–31
Dwight Stephenson (WPMOY)
1986 1986 3rd880
1987 1987 3rd870 Troy Stradford (OROY)
1988 1988 5th6100
1989 1989 3rd880
1990 1990 2nd1240Won Wild Card Playoffs (Chiefs) 17–16
Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Bills) 34–44
1991 1991 3rd880
1992 1992 1st1150Won Divisional Playoffs (Chargers) 31–0
Lost AFC Championship (Bills) 10–29
1993 1993 2nd970
1994 1994 1st1060Won Wild Card Playoffs (Chiefs) 27–17
Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Chargers) 21–22
Tim Bowens (DROY)
Dan Marino (CBPOY)
1995 1995 3rd970Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Bills) 22–37
1996 1996 4th880 Jimmy Johnson
1997 1997 2nd970Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Patriots) 3–17
1998 1998 2nd1060Won Wild Card Playoffs (Bills) 24–17
Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Broncos) 3–38
Dan Marino (WPMOY)
1999 1999 3rd970Won Wild Card Playoffs (at Seahawks) 20–17
Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Jaguars) 7–62
2000 2000 1st1150Won Wild Card Playoffs (Colts) 23–17 (OT)
Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Raiders) 0–27
Dave Wannstedt
2001 2001 2nd1150Lost Wild Card Playoffs (Ravens) 3–20
2002 2002 3rd970 Ricky Williams (PB MVP)
2003 2003 2nd1060
2004 2004 4th4120Dave Wannstedt (1–8)
Jim Bates (3–4)
2005 2005 2nd970 Nick Saban
2006 2006 4th6100 Jason Taylor (DPOY)
2007 2007 4th1150 Jason Taylor (WPMOY) Cam Cameron
2008 2008 1st1150Lost Wild Card Playoffs (Ravens) 9–27 Chad Pennington (CBPOY) Tony Sparano
2009 2009 3rd790
2010 2010 3rd790
2011 2011 3rd6100 Brandon Marshall (PB MVP)Tony Sparano (4–9)
Todd Bowles (2–1)
2012 2012 2nd790 Joe Philbin
2013 2013 3rd880
2014 2014 3rd880
2015 2015 4th6100Joe Philbin (1–3)
Dan Campbell (5–7)
2016 2016 2nd1060Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Steelers) 12–30 Adam Gase
2017 2017 3rd6100
2018 2018 2nd790
2019 2019 4th5110 Brian Flores
2020 2020 2nd1060
2021 2021 3rd980
2022 2022 2nd980Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Bills) 31–34 Mike McDaniel
2023 2023 1st1150TBD Wild Card Playoffs
4963984Regular season
2022Postseason
5164204Total

Note: Records current through the end of the 2023 NFL season

1 Due to a strike-shortened season in 1982, teams were ranked by conference instead of division

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References

  1. "Miami Dolphins Franchise Encyclopedia". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2019-01-04.