All time favorite dolphin

[simeon]

I have a question for all the dolfans on the board, who is your all time favorite dolphin ? I am not asking who you think was the best or greatest, but who your favorite is ?
My favorite.
Before there was Slash there was Crash and his name is Jim Jensen. He technically was a back up QB, but played every skill position on offense. He also played on special teams and was a long snapper, Jim did everything except sell pop corn during half time. but I wouldn't be surprised to hear he did that too.
For those younger fans who never heard of Jim Jensen here is a website I found on the net.  http://www.jimjensen11.com/

[Dave Gray]

There are several, of course.  I started out loving Marino as a kid, so that's my answer.

In terms of niche players, I really liked Pete Stoyonovich, as well as Reggie Roby.

[JonBGoode]

Without a doubt Jake Scott. Two rings, 5 times all pro, Super Bowl 7 MVP with 2 INTs in that game. Whats not to like; the man gets no respect. He should be in the HOF. Of the safeties in the Hall there are only two that have better numbers than Jake and those two are also head and shoulders above the other safeties already in the Hall. Jake should also be on the ring of Honor but until Shula has a change of heart it will never happen, sad to say.

[run_to_win]

Larry Csonka.

Guys like Rich Diana and Wes Welker are also on the list.

Gotta give props to the men up front such as Larry Little and Dwight Stephenson. 


I liked Crash Jensen before he became famous for catching passes out of the backfield.  Crash Jensen, the backup QB who played on special teams, was awesome.  Jim Jensen, the TE/H-back who caught passes out of the backfield, was overrated.  I think his success came from his lack of speed.  He was so dang slow that defenses didn't bother covering him.  Of course, everyone overlooks his career 141.4 passer rating, which includes perfect 158.3 ratings in 1984 and '89.

While Jake Scott made two big plays in Super Bowl VII, Manny Fernandez had 18 tackles.  He should have at least been co-MVP.

[doctord56]

Howard Twilley on offense....undersized WR, but tough as nails, hands of glue, and an original dolphin drafted in 1966. Welker like in his play, and beloved by the fans who recognized his tenaciousness and fearlessness.

Manny Fernandez on defense...a tough SOB who controlled the middle of the defensive line during the superbowl years, and never got the recognition he deserved for his great play.

Twilley was a 12th round pick, and Manny a free agent pick up; I've always rooted for guys who make it despite the odds against them.

[dolphins4life]

My all-time favorite player was Dan Marino.

My next favorite player on offense was.....Well I can't really name anybody.  We've never had a player who dazzled other than Dan Marino during my lifetime.  Even during our five year playoff run, we never had much talent on offense.  Ricky was a delight to watch in 2002, but we choked that season away.  Maybe Wes Welker, but he was underused here, so we never got a good glimpse.

Hopefully Ted Ginn Jr. will be the one to sparkle.

On defense, my favorite player was Zach Thomas.  He combined passion for the game, talent, and burning desire to become one of most enjoyable players to watch.

Special teams, well in my early life as Dolphins fan, it was Olindo Mare.  He was amazing during our five year playoff run.  He never seemed to miss.  He set a record for FGs in a season in 1999.  Then, during 2000 and 2001, you could count on one hand the total number of FGs his missed.  Of course, he faded late in his Dolphins career.  His last hurrah was the 53 yarder against Denver.  Then, he began missing like crazy.

My favorite Jack-of-all trades dolphin was Sammy Morris.  He was a solid running back and a great special teams contributor.  Letting him go to the Patriots was a mistake by the cameron-mueller adminstration

[Dave Gray]

In more recent years, I really liked Patrick Surtain.

And always, I love you, Ricky.   

[StL FinFan]

The only jerseys I own have either Marino or Madison on the back.

[TonyB0D]

Ray Lucas

[bsfins]

Well Dan marino is a given..

More recent guy's...

Oronde Gadsden....The guy wasn't a first round pick,wasn't flashy,wasn't fast...had great hands

John Offerdahl,Bernie Parmalee,Marco Coleman,Louis Oliver,Irving Fryar

[YoFuggedaboutit]

Bryan Cox.  Tough on the field and off it.  Gave off this "don't fuck with me or I'll nail you" aura.

[Thundergod]

Too easy,  Dan Marino.

2. Mark Duper
3. Mark Clayton

[ethurst2]

Without a doubt Jake Scott. Two rings, 5 times all pro, Super Bowl 7 MVP with 2 INTs in that game. Whats not to like; the man gets no respect. He should be in the HOF. Of the safeties in the Hall there are only two that have better numbers than Jake and those two are also head and shoulders above the other safeties already in the Hall. Jake should also be on the ring of Honor but until Shula has a change of heart it will never happen, sad to say.

I agree. Paul Zimmermann from Sports Illustrated has wondered for so many years why Jake Scott isn't in the Hall of Fame. I think what hurt Scott was that he was really a free-wheeling spirit. Scott actually said, *&**&^ the NFL and everyone else, I'm going to Hawaii. Jake Scott belongs in the Hall Of Fame and the Dolphins Ring of Honor.

Dave Hyde caught up with Jake Scott last year. Let me know if you read the article. If not, I'll send it to you, very interesting.

Back on track, my favorite Dolphin on defense has to be Manny Fernandez. He should be in the Hall Of Fame. 18 tackles in a Super Bowl? That's crazy.

On offense, It's Bob Griese. Griese was an extension of the coaching staff (Howard Schnellenberger, Monte Clark and Don Shula) on the field. Griese was the best quarterback I've ever seen at hard counts, faking handoffs, scrambling and thinking at least two plays ahead of the opposition. He was always calculating and cool.

Special teams, none other than Mercury Morris himself.

Best Coach? Hands down, Shula

[run_to_win]

[heresy alert - easily offended Dolphin fans need to avert their eyes]

Dan Marino is not a given - especially if the rumors about him repeatedly audibling away from running plays are true.  I don't hate him and I am very impressed with his accomplishments.  I appreciate everything he did for the team.  He was a great player, but is just another Dolphin player to me.

[/heresy]

Runningbacks from the Marino era that I like better than Marino .... Bernie Parmalee, Tony Nathan, Troy Stradford, and the diminutive Mark Higgs.  I already mentioned Rich Diana in my previous post. 

Andra Franklin, Woody Bennett, Ron Davenport and Joe Carter would be on the list had they stuck around longer.

The trivia question remains: in 1984, when Marino set all his records and the TEAM went to the Super Bowl, how many yards did the team rush for during the regular season?

[ethurst2]

[heresy alert - easily offended Dolphin fans need to avert their eyes]

Dan Marino is not a given - especially if the rumors about him repeatedly audibling away from running plays are true.  I don't hate him and I am very impressed with his accomplishments.  I appreciate everything he did for the team.  He was a great player, but is just another Dolphin player to me.

[/heresy]

Runningbacks from the Marino era that I like better than Marino .... Bernie Parmalee, Tony Nathan, Troy Stradford, and the diminutive Mark Higgs.  I already mentioned Rich Diana in my previous post. 

Andra Franklin, Woody Bennett, Ron Davenport and Joe Carter would be on the list had they stuck around longer.

The trivia question remains: in 1984, when Marino set all his records and the TEAM went to the Super Bowl, how many yards did the team rush for during the regular season?

I think the team rushed for 1918 yards which proves that in certain years, Marino DID have a running game. I'm doing research on all of that which will be finished by the end of this week and will post it. I think people will have a different view of Marino as a quarterback once the research is done. Truth is, and I've said it before...Dan Marino did not like running the ball. He wanted to throw it and he had running backs more than capable of being 1,000 yard backs every season. It got to the point where free agent running backs who liked carrying the ball didn't want to play for the Miami Dolphins knowing that they probably wouldn't get more than 12 touches a game.