Had Theismann signed with Miami, I wonder if they would have drafted Marino. It may have been Theismann who followed Griese in Miami. Also, if Woodley had fared better in the super bowl, I wonder the same thing.
I always felt bad for Woodley. He had played very well in the postseason win over San Diego two weeks prior and, at that time was considered a young, ascending talent. After the super bowl, that all changed.
Looking back, I'm not sure any adjustments would have worked against San Francisco. Shula did counter with an additional offensive lineman when Walsh put in seven corners, or six. Whatever it was. But then Miami only ran the ball nine times. Credit Walsh there. The Dolphins might have put up 40 points the way Marino was playing at the start of the game. Hard to imagine, but Miami led 10-7 and were looking unstoppable early on.
This narrative is definitely an interesting. But look at Sean McVay and Andy Reid. Both are considered offensive guru's and yet neither of their teams scored an offensive touchdown in the past few super bowls. And we're talking about an ERA when nobody blinks when a quarterback puts up 400 yards, or when two teams combine for 1,000 yards.