The American Football Conference (AFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in the United States. The AFC and its counterpart, the National Football Conference (NFC), each contain 16 teams with 4 divisions. Both conferences were created as part of the 1970 merger between the National Football League, and the American Football League (AFL). All ten of the AFL teams, and three NFL teams, became members of the new AFC, with the remaining thirteen NFL teams forming the NFC. A series of league expansions and division realignments have occurred since the merger, thus making the current total of 16 teams in each conference. The current AFC champions are the Kansas City Chiefs, who defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2022 season's AFC Championship Game for their third conference championship.
The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence. It was more successful than earlier rivals to the NFL with the same name, the 1926, 1936 and 1940 leagues, and the later All-America Football Conference.
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team plays its home games at Hard Rock Stadium, located in the northern suburb of Miami Gardens, Florida. The team is currently owned by Stephen M. Ross. The Dolphins are the oldest professional sports team in Florida. Of the four AFC East teams, the Dolphins are the only team in the division that was not a charter member of the American Football League (AFL). The Dolphins were also one of the first professional football teams in the southeast, along with the Atlanta Falcons.
The AFL–NFL merger was the merger of the two major professional American football leagues in the United States at the time: the National Football League (NFL) and the American Football League (AFL). It paved the way for the combined league, which retained the "National Football League" name and logo, to become the most popular sports league in the United States. The merger was announced on the evening of June 8, 1966. Under the merger agreement, the leagues maintained separate regular-season schedules for the next four seasons—from 1966 through 1969 with a final championship game which would become known as the Super Bowl—and then officially merged before the 1970 season to form one league with two conferences.
The Playoff Bowl was a post-season game for third place in the National Football League (NFL), played ten times following the 1960 through 1969 seasons, all at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida. It was originally known as the Runner-Up Bowl.
Nicholas Anthony Buoniconti was an American professional football player who was a middle linebacker in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Buoniconti played professionally for the Boston Patriots and Miami Dolphins, winning two Super Bowls with the Dolphins. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001.
Larry Chatmon Little is an American former professional football player who was an offensive guard in the American Football League (AFL) and the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Bethune–Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida. He signed with the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted free agent in 1967. After two years in San Diego, he was then traded to the Miami Dolphins where he played for the rest of his career, establishing himself as one of the best offensive guards in the NFL.
The American Football Conference – Eastern Division or AFC East is one of the four divisions of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). There are currently four teams that reside in the division: the Buffalo Bills ; the Miami Dolphins ; the New England Patriots ; and the New York Jets. All four members of the AFC East were previously members of the Eastern Division of the American Football League (AFL).
Eugene Edward "Mercury" Morris is an American former professional football player who was a running back and kick returner. He played for eight years, primarily for the Miami Dolphins, in the American Football League (AFL) as a rookie in 1969 then in the American Football Conference (AFC) following the 1970 merger with the National Football League (NFL).
James Forrest Kiick was an American professional football player. He played as a running back for the Miami Dolphins in the American Football League (AFL) from 1968 to 1969 and in the National Football League (NFL) from 1970 through 1977, except for 1975 when he played in the World Football League (WFL).
Richard Paul Anderson is an American former professional football player who was a safety for the Miami Dolphins of the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons during the 1960s and 1970s. He played college football for the Colorado Buffaloes and was recognized as a consensus All-American. He was selected in third round of the 1968 NFL/AFL draft, and he played for his entire professional career for the Dolphins.
Robert Theodore Trumpy Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a tight end for the Cincinnati Bengals in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) from 1968 through 1977. He was a two-time NFL Pro Bowler and a two-time AFL All-Star. Following his playing career, Trumpy spent many years as a broadcast color analyst, calling four Super Bowls. He was given the Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award by the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2014.
George William Wilson, Jr. was an American football player. He played college football at Xavier University and professionally for the American Football League's (AFL) 1966 expansion team, the Miami Dolphins. In 1965, Wilson was selected in the 20th round of the National Football League (NFL) draft by the Detroit Lions, with the overall 277th pick. However, he eventually signed with the AFL's Buffalo Bills, who drafted him as the 96th pick in the 12th round of the Red Shirt draft. In 1966, Wilson was traded to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for a 13th round 1967 draft pick. At the time, the Dolphins' head coach was his father, George Wilson, Sr.
Robert Matheson was an American football linebacker who played 13 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played in three Super Bowls for the Miami Dolphins, including their 1972 and 1973 championships.
Douglas Gordon Crusan Jr. is a former American football defensive tackle who played seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Miami Dolphins. He played in Super Bowls VI, VII, and VIII. Crusan Jr was the starting offensive tackle for the 1972 Super Bowl Champion Miami Dolphins, the only NFL team to finish a season with a perfect record (17–0). He was also the team captain for the 1967 Indiana Hoosiers football team and played defensive tackle in the 1968 Rose Bowl against Georgia University and O. J. Simpson. Crusan was a first-round selection in the 1968 NFL Draft, picked by the Dolphins behind Joe Burrow and has been involved in the private sector as a senior business manager since retiring from the NFL, and has been actively involved in the NFLPA for 38 years.
James Davis "Country" Warren was a collegiate halfback and professional football cornerback who played twelve seasons with the American Football League's San Diego Chargers and Miami Dolphins and the NFL's Oakland Raiders.
The 1966 American Football League season was the seventh regular season of the AFL. The league began its merger process with the National Football League (NFL) in June, which took effect fully in 1970.
Kenneth Earl Rice was an American professional football player who was an offensive tackle in the American Football League (AFL) for the Buffalo Bills, Oakland Raiders, and the Miami Dolphins. Rice played college football for the Auburn Tigers, where he was named a two-time All-American.
