That Shula team had Little, Langer and Kuechenburg plus LB's that could actually play
Ozzy rules!!
There were great players all over the roster, thanks to Joe Thomas in the late '60s, and several astute pickups from Shula after he arrived. By 1970 we already had Paul Warfield and Bob Griese and Larry Csonka and Nick Buoniconti, along with Jim Langer. Five Hall of Famers.
Bill Stanfill and Dick Anderson played at very, very high level for many seasons, although their careers were cut short by injury. There have certainly been Hall of Fame players who were less effective than Stanfill or Anderson during their peak seasons.
I'm always frustrated when alltime Dolphin teams are proposed and younger fans want to leave out the early '70s types. It is uninformed, to be kind. Stanfill seldom receives a mention. The defensive linemen from that team are underrated in general. Vern Den Herder was excellent at left end. Manny Fernandez receives some notoriety due to his effort in the Super Bowl vs. Washington. Only Bob Heinz was mostly a blue collar player who does not belong in alltime discussion.
Those Dolphin teams were incredibly smart. That aspect stood out beyond anything, along with the running game dominance. Only Will McDonough of the Boston Globe and later NBC tried to emphasize the smart and resourceful aspect to inform younger fans. Once he died I sensed the topic would mostly drift away with him.
Dick Anderson was so field smart that he fooled the network announcers as a rookie. Buffalo was punting at old War Memorial Stadium. A Bills player touched the ball inside the Dolphins 5 but did not secure it. Anderson rushed in like a kamikaze and grabbed the ball. Both announcers condemned the decision as dangerous and idiotic. But Anderson knew the rule, that once the kicking team had touched the ball there couldn't be a fumble from the return team. That rule seldom comes into play today but in the late '60s it was even less mentioned or understood.
Those safeties were incredibly special. I always have to laugh when someone tries to place a more recent Dolphin above them, especially Reshad Jones.
