MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Dick LeBeau has witnessed plenty in his football lifestyle. He spent 6 many years in the NFL as a player and coach. Produced the Pro Soccer Hall of Fame. Served the Pittsburgh Steelers acquire two Super Bowls as a defensive coordinator.
And he assisted conquer the 1972 Miami Dolphins.
Certainly, all those great, unbeaten Dolphins. They lost. 3 instances. All in the preseason, like the exhibition opener to the Detroit Lions — 31-23, a video game where LeBeau jumped in front of a move meant for Miami tight stop Jim Mandich and made a a single-handed interception in the remaining times to seal the victory.
Which is correct. The crew completed 17- but technically commenced -1.
“I do try to remember quite a few points about that time,” reported LeBeau, who confessed he did not remember substantially about the preseason opener from that year, which was his very last in the NFL as a player. “And I know what the Dolphins did, not only has it hardly ever been carried out due to the fact, it will hardly ever be accomplished once more.”
Groups played 6 preseason video games back again then. The Dolphins dropped to Detroit, then to Inexperienced Bay 14-13 the next week to go to -2, additionally misplaced their 7 days 5 preseason video game 27-24 to Washington — the group that Miami would wind up beating in the Tremendous Bowl to cap off the excellent season.
So, Miami went 3-3 in the exhibitions. And then hardly ever dropped once more.
There have been some near normal-season calls — the Dolphins wanted to rally with 10 fourth-quarter factors to beat Minnesota 16-14 in 7 days 3 eked out a 24-23 home win around Buffalo in Week 6 acquired a 14-yard touchdown operate from Mercury Morris in the fourth quarter of Week 10’s 28-24 get more than the New York Jets and an 8-garden run from Jim Kiick in the fourth carried Miami above Cleveland 20-14 in the divisional playoff.
But they never ever dropped a match. Not a single that mattered, in any case.
“It has become a entertaining issue to fall,” said Scott Hunter, who played quarterback for Eco-friendly Bay that year and assisted the Packers earn that preseason matchup. “You know, it’s type of a challenging query. You get close to a bunch of soccer supporters, and they start out conversing about that period of time and that time and so forth. And you say, ‘OK, who conquer the Miami Dolphins in ’72?’ That receives everybody scratching their head.”
With no are unsuccessful, Hunter — now a economical planner and the host of an Alabama radio system called “Talkin’ Football” — gets instructed that the Dolphins went unbeaten.
“Not always,” he replies.
Hunter finished only a few passes in that video game, but two went for touchdowns to Dave Davis — one for 79 yards to open the scoring, just one for 10 yards to place the Packers up 14-. But they required some heroics at the close to end off the gain, and Green Bay rookie cornerback Willie Buchanon tackled Dolphins holder Karl Noonan with 55 seconds still left to make certain the potential tying added-position endeavor immediately after a botched snap under no circumstances received attempted.
Buchanon remembers that engage in. He also remembers how significantly the sides took the match Dolphins operating again Larry Csonka, he recalled, ran as a result of Environmentally friendly Bay basic safety Al Matthews with these kinds of power that Matthews did not know wherever he was for a instant.
“Players now would assume it is ridiculous but we played 6 online games and it was pretty tricky, or brutal,” reported Buchanon, who now operates in genuine estate and is a uniform inspector for the NFL on sport times. “It was really hard to see quarterbacks, large receivers and all that things sitting out in preseason video games. Nah. That transpires these days. It didn’t occur in those people days.”
LeBeau, Hunter and Buchanon all share in this perception: The Dolphins will be the last best team.
None of them can envision a further team going by way of what now is a 17-match standard year, then the playoffs, and emerging unscathed.
“It’s about that mystique of not allowing a staff go undefeated any longer,” Buchanon said. “Every workforce will be gunning for you when you are undefeated, and any staff can beat any team now on any provided Sunday. It’s a pleasure detail. Undoubtedly a pleasure issue.”
Extra LeBeau: “You know, with cost-free company and the way people today go all around now, I never know if anybody’s likely to develop a workforce that can be quite damn difficult to conquer and be entire world champions and under no circumstances eliminate a recreation. I do not imagine it’ll ever be done if it hadn’t been carried out by now.”
LeBeau has deep affinity for Shula, for fantastic motive. LeBeau was in his next season with the Lions when they gave Shula his 1st NFL job in 1960, then as a defensive backfield coach. LeBeau experienced the first 4 of his 62 occupation interceptions that season, using his initially ways alongside the path to the Hall of Fame.
That interception versus the Dolphins in 1972 isn’t in that full. Preseason video games could have been taken a little bit extra very seriously back again then, but LeBeau — now retired and focusing on his golfing recreation — also insists that winning an exhibition wasn’t a massive deal, possibly.
The unbeaten Dolphins, he reported, had been in fact unbeaten.
“I don’t know if there’s a phrase ‘overcelebrate,’” LeBeau stated. “But I don’t believe you can overcelebrate that group and what they obtained performed. It was completely amazing.”
To use a different word, fantastic.
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