What was the reaction to Dan Marino being drafted? | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

What was the reaction to Dan Marino being drafted?

Stratman Tigers

Stratman Tigers

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My father tells me he was annoyed by the pick, saying he was a coke head and had a horrible senior year with Pitt, and figured he wouldn't do anything in the NFL. Boy was he wrong. :chuckle:
 
Stratman Tigers said:
My father tells me he was annoyed by the pick, saying he was a coke head and had a horrible senior year with Pitt, and figured he wouldn't do anything in the NFL. Boy was he wrong. :chuckle:
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Personally I was excited about the pick. Yeah we had just been in super bowl with Woodley. But Dan had a hell of an arm . And as a junior he was great. His senior year was rough. And the coke thing was mostly allegations I believe. Which back then the technology wasn't as advanced as todays. And I am glad things went as they did otherwise Dan may have been playing for Chiefs or Colts. In which back then I believe Chiefs were one of the first teams that picked a Qb that year.
 
Same as Shula,


"We had him rated right behind (John) Elway and ahead of (Jim) Kelly," Shula says. "But we never dreamed we'd have a shot at Dan."

Marino, however, kept dropping. All the way to Miami's spot at No.27.
"I remembered the beautiful quick release he had," Shula says.
"(David) Woodley was an exceptional athlete playing quarterback for us. Marino was a pure passer."

http://www.mywire.com/a/USATODAY/Marino-finally-gets-ring/958088?&pbl=27
 
I remember the first game I saw with Marino was the Pitt/Penn State game when he was a junior at Pitt. I am pretty sure it was on Thanksgiving or right around then. He was terrific in that game and I was instantly a fan. Like your father said he didn't have a great year as a senior and, just like this year with some others, there were rumors flying around about him doing some kind of drugs. Anyway, thats why he fell, but I was completely pumped about getting him. If I hadn't seen him play as a junior I might not have been so excited.
 
I was only 3 at the time but I think I remember logging in to a BBS and posting a 'Trade Marino' thread....luckily Shula didn't listen!! :)
 
Other than Elway it still boggles my brain that 5 quaterbacks were taken before him that day.
 
dan lake worth said:
Other than Elway it still boggles my brain that 5 quaterbacks were taken before him that day.
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Marino had an awful senior year. Like 5 more picks than Tds. If a prospect did that now , he would fall too.
 
The draft was on during the week back then and so most people didn't even know about it when it happened as they were at work. It wasn't uncommon to eventually read about stuff like the draft in a newspaper a day or so later to find out who your team got if you can believe that.

Back in the late 70's, there were no Sunday night games or highlight shows and I'd often find out who won late games in the paper the next day since CBS would go to 60 Minutes (yep, it's been on forever) without a peep about the late scores. Hard to imagine that being the case in this world we live in today. Then again, most people can't imagine television coming on at 4:30 in the afternoon and signing off in what is now prime time.
 
Being a big Woodley fan at the time, I honestly was a little disappointed. The problem with Woodley was that as a rookie, he came in and played much better than anyone expected. As a second, and third year player, we all expected him to grow, but in retrospect, he never changed much from his rookie year.

Marino, well, I still remember his first start, at home against Buffalo. Never imagined a rookie QB could be so dominant, absolutely incredible to watch, could not go to the bathroom with Miami on offense, score on any play.

I did not know it at the time, but we had already started going down the wrong path after Bobby Bethard left, no more AJ Duhe, Dwight Stephenson, Bob Baumhauer, Doug Betters type draft picks. No, our picks sounded more like Rick Graf, Eric Kumerow, and John Bosa.......

If Bethard would have stayed in Miami, the Dolphins would have been the team of the 80's, maybe early 90's also...
 
I couldn't believe it.

My dad, who was a huge Don Strock fan, said to me "that kid is going to be special".
 
Well I was a little kid, but I remember Shula saying, Dan Marino is a Miami Dolphin and his family too.
 
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