What Might Have Been

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Just for fun I wonder what might have happened if the World Football League didn't sign Larry Csonka, Paul Warfield and Jim Kiick at (near) the peak of the Dolphins dominance in the early 1970's. I know we'll never know if Miami would have won another title, but I definitely think their window of opportunity was still open and probably would have been for another couple of years. I think 1975 would have been their best shot. In 1975, one year after losing the three players (two of which ended up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame) the Dolphins went 10-4 but somehow missed the playoffs. Baltimore also finished 10-4 that season and won the AFC East, in part because of a 10-7 overtime win over the Dolphins late in the season. Miami's defense allowed just 222 points that year, with only the Steelers allowing less (162) in the AFC so that unit was still championship caliber. With Warfield, Csonka and Kiick I believe Miami wins two more games and finishes 12-2. The overtime loss to Baltimore and the 20-19 setback versus Houston (which finished 10-4) could have been wins. It would have been tough to beat the Steelers in the playoffs, as Pittsburgh went 12-2 and was coming off its first championship. But if the game was played at the Orange Bowl, I'd certainly take my chances with the Dolphins as that was truly a great homefield advantage. Dallas, a wildcard team, ended up in the super bowl for the NFC and wouldn't that have been sweet revenge if Miami beat the Cowboys? Another factor is the draft and how that might have changed for the Dolphins who suddenly had to look to replace a big part of the offense following the 1974 season. I'm not one to look back very often and, of course, we'll never know what might have been. But there isn't much going on right now, outside of Jason Taylor, and it would be fun to hear other opinions.

 

[xxAQUA JOSHUAxx]

Stupid world football league we couldve won at least 2 more superbowls

 

[SpaceMountain16]

Pittsburgh was still on the cusp though, especially when they got Swann and Stallworth with Mike Webster and Jack Ham in that 1974 draft. I'm not sure that the Dolphin teams with Csonka, Morris and Kiick would have been able to beat the Steelers teams from 75 onwards. It's certainly something very interesting to think about.

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Pittsburgh was still on the cusp though, especially when they got Swann and Stallworth with Mike Webster and Jack Ham in that 1974 draft. I'm not sure that the Dolphin teams with Csonka, Morris and Kiick would have been able to beat the Steelers teams from 75 onwards. It's certainly something very interesting to think about.

It would have been tough, no doubt, but definitely possible. That 1974 Steelers draft is probably the best of all-time. Interestingly, Miami picked Benny Malone in the second round one pick after Pittsburgh took Jack Lambert.

 

[jd13]

just proves how great shula truly was..it would be like the steelers losing rocky blier, franco harris and lynn swann..the cowboys losing preston pearson, robert newhouse and drew pearson..the raiders losing clarance davis, mark van eeghan and cliff branch..it would have hurt those teams the same way that it hurt the dolphins but shula still had the dolphins at 10-4..

 

[hemidemon]

Can you imagine the games between the Dolphins, Steelers, and the Raiders had it not been for that idiot WFL? They would have been classics!

 

[nyjunc]

Who knows but Csonka was in decline:

1971: 5.4 YPC
1972: 5.2
1973: 4.6
1974: 3.8
1976 w/ NYG: 3.6

Kiick didn't even have a season of 100 rushes his last 2 w/ Miami and Warfield averaged about 28 recs a season his last 3 in Miami. I'm sure it hurt a bit but you didn't lose these guys in their primes.

 

[maverick50]

this is only my opinion but i think it was shula who droped the ball on the csonka thing asnd trading warfield didnt help at all.
I would have kept warfield , kiick and maybe csonka . didnt mercury get hurt right after losing the other guys ?
THE loss of those didnt hurt as bad as it could have but we never drafted well enough to replace them.
it is suprising that our window of oportunity closed and never opened back up.

the way we lost Kiick and Warfield is what angers me the most though.
picking in later rounds hurt us a little bit because the talent was void at where the fins have picked yet i could be wrong but the dolphins have not drafted a lot of superstars in a long , long time.

 

[Digital]

I'm biased, but I have no doubt in my mind that the Dolphins would have won at least 2 more Super Bowls. IMHO, that's the real reason some people do not talk about the 1972 Dolphins as the greatest team ever, but if they had strung together 3 or 4 Super Bowl victories, I think everyone would come to admit what we already know, that there is a reason that Perfectville contains only 1 team .... because it is the best team ever.

Anybody that doesn't think the best fullback ever to play the game, plus a fantastic receiver wouldn't have made a difference is just plain delusional. Csonka made both Kiick and Morris great IMHO. Take Sweetness and Gault off the Bears teams, or Emmit and Irvin off the Cowboys teams, or really the best back and receiver off of any of these teams claiming to be the best ever, and what do you get? Instantly a huge dropoff in production. If anyone takes exception with my comparison of Csonka to Sweetness or Emmitt, then I think they need to re-watch Csonka's games, because he was THE best blocking fullback in the game (possibly ever) and he blocked as though he were a 350 lbs guard, and he was simultaneously THE best short yardage back in the history of the NFL. Heck, Jim Kiick was our starting RB, but despite both Kiick and Morris' great talent, neither one of them could really hold a candle to Csonka in terms of all around team contribution. And for what it's worth, I'd rate Paul Warfield better than either Gault or Irvin, but that's debatale.

The WFL really took a huge bite out of our glory days. Sometimes I think Marino sliding to us was repayment for stealing Csonka, Warfield and Kiick during the apex of their careers.

 

[SpaceMountain16]

Who knows but Csonka was in decline:

1971: 5.4 YPC
1972: 5.2
1973: 4.6
1974: 3.8
1976 w/ NYG: 3.6

Kiick didn't even have a season of 100 rushes his last 2 w/ Miami and Warfield averaged about 28 recs a season his last 3 in Miami. I'm sure it hurt a bit but you didn't lose these guys in their primes.

In 1974 Larry Csonka was 28 years old and an all-pro player. His YPC was down because his carries were up, 197 in just 12 games. You're foolish to say he was "declining" he had several more years of great football in him, which is why he was a Hall of Fame player.

Morris and Kiick were both very talented players too, i fail to see why you have to step in to EVERY 72 Dolphins thread and blast the teams accomplishments.

 

[nyjunc]

In 1974 Larry Csonka was 28 years old and an all-pro player. His YPC was down because his carries were up, 197 in just 12 games. You're foolish to say he was "declining" he had several more years of great football in him, which is why he was a Hall of Fame player.

Morris and Kiick were both very talented players too, i fail to see why you have to step in to EVERY 72 Dolphins thread and blast the teams accomplishments.

28 was old for a RB and that would mean the first year he was gone he was 29, he was in decline. This was not Csonka in his prime, it's foolish to think that those 3 players would have won the dolphins another SB or 2 especially since you had them in 1974 and didn't win it all- you didn't even make the title game.

 

[SF Dolphin Fan]

Who knows but Csonka was in decline:

1971: 5.4 YPC
1972: 5.2
1973: 4.6
1974: 3.8
1976 w/ NYG: 3.6

Kiick didn't even have a season of 100 rushes his last 2 w/ Miami and Warfield averaged about 28 recs a season his last 3 in Miami. I'm sure it hurt a bit but you didn't lose these guys in their primes.

After the WFL, Csonka played two years with the Giants and then had his swan song with the Dolphins in 1979. That year he rushed for 837 yards, averaging 3.8 per carry and scored a career-high 12 rushing touchdowns. That's five years after 1974 and he obviously still had something left. He was in his prime when he left for the WFL. Warfield was a little older, but played two years with Cleveland before retiring after 1977. Unlike Csonka and Warfield, Kiick was not a Hall of Famer. But he was a solid player who really did everything well. You are right about one thing, who knows what might have happened. But those guys all still had something left.

 

[FORMER FIN1]

Who knows but Csonka was in decline:

1971: 5.4 YPC
1972: 5.2
1973: 4.6
1974: 3.8
1976 w/ NYG: 3.6

Kiick didn't even have a season of 100 rushes his last 2 w/ Miami and Warfield averaged about 28 recs a season his last 3 in Miami. I'm sure it hurt a bit but you didn't lose these guys in their primes.

Especially since they weren't "padding their stats" against a sorry *** Jets team twice a year.

 

[Kendra_Chelsea]

In 1974 Larry Csonka was 28 years old and an all-pro player. His YPC was down because his carries were up, 197 in just 12 games. You're foolish to say he was "declining" he had several more years of great football in him, which is why he was a Hall of Fame player.

Morris and Kiick were both very talented players too, i fail to see why you have to step in to EVERY 72 Dolphins thread and blast the teams accomplishments.

I noticed he is in the 72 threads also but you really have to give him slack. As a jets fan they really do not understand glory years, when talking about football. When your team is as bad as his team is for so many years you become bitter and feel the need to belittle other team’s achievements.

We really need to understand the deep resentment he has for perfection and anything connected to glory years.

It’s hard but I try hard to let him stretch the facts to fit his argument. It’s kind of like my good deed for the day. :D

 

[Funkymonks]

I noticed he is in the 72 threads also but you really have to give him slack. As a jets fan they really do not understand glory years, when talking about football. When your team is as bad as his team is for so many years you become bitter and feel the need to belittle other team’s achievements.

We really need to understand the deep resentment he has for perfection and anything connected to glory years.

It’s hard but I try hard to let him stretch the facts to fit his argument. It’s kind of like my good deed for the day. :D

:sidelol::sidelol: