1996 Miami Dolphins: The Johnson Era Begins

The 1996 Miami Dolphins were starting a new era in franchise history. The 26-year run of the legendary Don Shula ended after the 1995 season. Shula had won two Super Bowls, five AFC titles and made the playoffs in four of his final six years. But with the great quarterback Dan Marino getting older, the organization was impatient for a deep playoff run. And there was a big name on the market—Jimmy Johnson, architect of the Dallas Cowboy Dynasty of the first half of the 1990s, was available. In 1996, he returned to South Beach, where he had won a collegiate national championship in 1987.

Marino was 35-years-old but still playing good football. In 1996, his 7.5 yards-per-attempt ranked fourth among starting quarterbacks. His TD/INT ratio was 17-9, and a 2.4% interception rate was a top-5 figure. While a 59 percent completion rate was a little lower, it wasn’t the disaster it would be in today’s game and still ranked 12^th in the league. All in all, Marino played efficiently enough and excelled at getting the ball downfield while avoiding mistakes.

What he didn’t have was a ton of support. O.J. McDuffie was a solid receiver, catching 74 passes for over 900 yards. But there was a steep drop-off after that, with Fred Barnett only catching 36 passes, and fullback Stanley Pritchett being the third target. The offensive line had a Pro Bowl left tackle in Richmond Webb, but not a lot else. That showed up in the running game. While Karim-Abdul Jabbar ran for over 1,100 yards, it came at a heavy cost—a meager 3.6 yards-per-attempt. And the Miami offense ranked a so-so 13^th in the league for points scored.

Johnson would ultimately rebuild the defense, the side of the ball that was his specialty, but there were growing pains in 1996. He had respectable pass rushers in Trace Armstrong and Danny Stubbs, who combined for 21 sacks at the defensive end spots. Terrell Buckley intercepted six passes at corner. A Hall of Fame linebacker in Zach Thomas got his start. But Thomas was one of three rookies in the starting lineup. The unit was young, nobody made the Pro Bowl, and they ranked a mediocre 17^th in points allowed.

The season opened with a late afternoon home game against the New England Patriots, coached by Bill Parcells. The Dolphin defense made an immediate impact when Sean Hill returned a fumble 10 yards for an early touchdown. Miami won the turnover battle 4-1, Abdul-Jabbar ran for 115 yards and the Fish churned out a 24-10 win.

A Sunday Night date at mediocre Arizona was next, and it was more of the same. The Dolphins forced four turnovers and only committed one. They won rush yardage 128-27. Marino was efficient, 14/23 for 178 yards and no mistakes. A pair of early TD runs from Abdul-Jabbar set the tone for an easy 38-10 win.

Miami hosted a woeful New York Jets team in Week 3. The defense showed some cracks, but the Dolphins did what they wanted offensively. Abdul-Jabbar ran for 124 yards. Marino went 13/23 and made big plays, turning them into 257 passing yards and three touchdowns. Miami rolled to a 3-0 record with a 36-27 win.

That set up a Monday Night visit to Indianapolis. The Colts had reached the AFC Championship Game a year ago. In the divisional alignment that existed prior to 2002, Indy was in the AFC East. This was a big early test.

It was a disastrous night offensively. Marino was knocked out early with an ankle injury. The running game was non-existent. The defense kept the Dolphins in the game, but it ended in a 10-6 loss. And while an early bye week next was opportune for Marino’s ankle, he was still going to miss the next three games.

Craig Erickson was the starter for a home game with Seattle. The Seahawks were a mediocre team, so the Dolphins were still a 7 ½ point favorite, even with a backup quarterback. Erickson played pretty well, going 16/28 for 243 yards. But the offensive line was awful, allowing four sacks and creating no room for a running game. The secondary got beat for a couple of long touchdown passes and the afternoon ended with a 22-15 loss.

A road trip to Buffalo, the defending division champs, and a contender again this year, was now even bigger. The Miami offense would struggle on every front, but they stayed mistake-free. That was the difference. The Dolphin D collected four turnovers. The biggest came in the fourth quarter. Clinging to a 14-7 lead, Buckley intercepted a pass on his own nine-yard line and took it 91 yards to the house. Miami won 21-7.

The Dolphins played another contender from the Northeast in the playoff-bound Philadelphia Eagles. Erickson went 18/31 for 239 yards, while McDuffie caught seven balls for 121 yards. But the defense struggled, and the running game couldn’t get going. Miami fell behind 28-11 and ultimately lost 35-28.

It was time for the game the entire NFL world had waited for. Miami was hosting Dallas. The Cowboys were the defending Super Bowl champs, and it was Johnson against his old team.

The gap between the Dolphins and the league’s elite, something that had been apparent during the last years of Shula’s tenure, was again put on display for the late Sunday afternoon national audience. Marino returned but could only go 12/27 for 173 yards. Miami was outrushed 123-48. A decisive 29-10 loss could actually have been much worse, given that the Dolphin D was able to force three red-zone field goals.

Miami was 4-4 and facing a dogfight just to make the playoffs as they went north for the rematch with New England, another game getting national attention in the late afternoon window. Marino went 17/34, but again got the ball successfully down the field, producing 225 passing yards. Abdul-Jabbar ran for 104 yards, albeit on 29 carries and the Dolphins led 17-14 early in the third quarter. But the young defense was getting diced by a Patriot offense beginning a surge that would take them all the way to the Super Bowl. Miami collapsed and lost, 42-23.

The home rematch with Indianapolis now had to be played with the utmost of urgency. Marino was razor-sharp, going 17/23 for 204 yards, three touchdowns and no mistakes. McDuffie caught six of those passes for 106 yards. The defense held the Colts to 33 yards rushing. An easy 37-13 win got the Fish back to .500 and kept them in the hunt.

They went to Houston where the Oilers (today’s Tennessee Titans) were also on the playoff fringe. Another Miami game was in the 4 PM ET time slot, given the national interest in the Johnson/Marino ticket. They dug themselves a 14-0 hole. Marino went 21/28 for 237 yards and steered clear of mistakes to keep the Dolphins in it. They cut the lead to 17-13 early in the fourth quarter. Thomas came up with a Pick-6 that decisively swung the tide in a 23-20 win.

Miami came back home to host playoff-bound Pittsburgh on Monday Night Football, a few days prior to Thanksgiving. The evening started well, with Calvin Jackson’s Pick-6 keying an early 14-3 lead. But there was no running game. Special teams was a problem with a couple of missed field goals. Momentum turned and the night ended with a 24-17 defeat.

We were heading into the homestretch with the Dolphins at 6-6. They were three games off the pace in the AFC East, so the division title was not a realistic possibility. But the postseason was. Miami was only one game out of the final wild-card spot, one of several teams chasing the 7-5 San Diego Chargers.

The road trip to face the mediocre Oakland Raiders was huge. And the Dolphins played atrocious football. They were outrushed 156-34. Marino threw three interceptions. The result was a 17-7 loss. The Chargers lost, so the Fish stayed a game back. But the Colts moved up to 7-6, so Miami now had two teams ahead of them.

Playing a bad New York Giants team at home seemed the ideal tonic. Except the defense couldn’t get off the field. The Dolphins had fewer than 24 minutes of possession time. While Barnett caught four balls for 139 yards, Marino threw two more interceptions. Another 17-7 loss had Miami’s playoff chances on life support.

They were hosting Buffalo, one of the teams that would eventually make the postseason, on Monday Night. But the results of Sunday spelled the end. The Dolphins were eliminated by the time kickoff arrived.

To their credit, Miami did not throw in the towel. Marino went 26/37 for 263 yards, the Dolphins won rushing 145-61 and they edged the Bills 16-14. Then Miami wrapped up the year by beating the Jets 31-28, rallying from a 14-0 deficit behind 152 yards rushing from Abdul-Jabbar. They got to .500 to finish the season.

It was a disappointing first year for Johnson, but things would get better. While Miami never did make that deep playoff run they were hoping for, the Dolphins were on the cusp of a five-year run of making the postseason, three of which would be with Johnson and Marino.