1984 Dolphins Ranked 7th Best Offense of All-Time

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Bleacher Report rated the top offenses of all-time and the 1984 Miami Dolphins garnered the 7th spot on their list.

I think the rankings were pretty good overall. If Miami had any semblance of a running game, that 1984 offense could have been the best ever. The Patriots team that went 18-1 and lost the super bowl to the Giants was ranked number one overall.

 

[BlueFin]

Bleacher Report rated the top offenses of all-time and the 1984 Miami Dolphins garnered the 7th spot on their list.

I think the rankings were pretty good overall. If Miami had any semblance of a running game, that 1984 offense could have been the best ever. The Patriots team that went 18-1 and lost the super bowl to the Giants was ranked number one overall.

Linkee?

 

[royalshank]

I don't see any link but I'm willing to bet the majority of the "better" offenses were from more recent years where it's easier to move the ball through the air.

Also, the '84 team did average over 100 yards rushing per game. They did it by committee and did run the rock when they had built comfortable leads in the 4th as opppsed to laying on more points like say the 2007 Pats seemed to do. It was in the SB where our run game failed us - when SF realized they weren't going to be able to stop Dan, they went to a 3 man line w 8 defensive backs. Shula tried to counter by running the ball but our 5 couldn't block their 3. All in all though that '84 team could run it "decently".

 

[gregorygrant83]

I don't see any link but I'm willing to bet the majority of the "better" offenses were from more recent years where it's easier to move the ball through the air.

The different generation reasoning has been around for ever. I remember when people were saying how much easier the qb's of the 80's and 90's had it because defenses in the 60's and 70's would mug a receiver.

I remember Griese saying quarterbacks like Kelly, Marino and Bledsoe might throw more passes over a three or four game stretch than he would throw in an entire season. Of course that's an exageration, but the game is always different from era to era. Just think about how some of those bigger slower linebackers of the 70's and 80's would have faired trying to run down Michael Vick of RGIII?

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Here is the link:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2713599-nfl-nostalgia-ranking-the-best-offenses-in-nfl-history

Miami actually ranked 6th.

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

1984 Miami Dolphins ranked #6

From Bleacher Report:

1. 
   Dan Marino threw for 5,084 yards in a season when only two other teams threw for more than 4,000 yards. He threw 48 touchdown passes in a season when no other quarterback threw more than 32. Mark Duper and Mark Clayton (shown) combined for 26 touchdowns while gaining over 1,300 yards apiece.
   
   We did not call these "video game numbers" back then, because video games were not yet sophisticated enough to generate realistic-looking statistics (or football, for that matter). Back then, future football analytics geeks played dice board games like Strat-o-Matic or APBA: call a play, roll the dice, look at the cards and charts, and determine whether the play result was a touchdown or a two-yard gain.
   
   Marino broke those 1984 board games the way Michael Vick broke Madden in 2004 or Steph Curry glitches modern versions of NBA2K. The 1970s structure of those games was no match for a quarterback averaging 9.0 yards per pass and throwing a touchdown on 8.5 percent of his attempts, just as leftover 1970s defensive tactics were no match for the real Marino. All a gamer had to do was call long pass after long pass, and Marino's card served up enough big plays to rout any opponent.
   
   Marino '84 was, as video gamers would now say, overpowered.
   
   Marino, the Marks brothers and the 1984 Dolphins won without a featured 1970s workhorse running back. They used three- and four-receiver sets on early downs. They broke every single old-school rule about establishing the run, even though coach Don Shula was as old-school as they come. Defenses were forced to adapt, just as game designers had to change their charts and algorithms to account for the new style of play.
   
   The 1984 Dolphins didn't just score points. They changed paradigms.
   

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

The different generation reasoning has been around for ever. I remember when people were saying how much easier the qb's of the 80's and 90's had it because defenses in the 60's and 70's would mug a receiver.

I remember Griese saying quarterbacks like Kelly, Marino and Bledsoe might throw more passes over a three or four game stretch than he would throw in an entire season. Of course that's an exageration, but the game is always different from era to era. Just think about how some of those bigger slower linebackers of the 70's and 80's would have faired trying to run down Michael Vick of RGIII?

Agree the passing game has definitely evolved in a major way. Going back to the 1970's defensive linemen could head slap the offensive lineman and the defensive backs had much more freedom than in today's game. Pass interference had to be blatant and obvious and sometimes even that wasn't called. Think of Paul Warfield versus Oakland in the "Sea of Hands" game. That type of physicality was so common then.

I commend the league for changing rules to protect the quarterback and defenseless wide receivers. The safety rules were needed, but sometimes I feel like they've gone a little too far.