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The Seven Myths on why Dan Marino never won a Super Bowl

Pasadena Trojan posted a graphic of the top 10 QBs in NFL history and for many fans, Dan Marino would be in their top 10.

In the regular season, he was good enough to beat the '85 Bears. However, in the post-season, he couldn't beat the '85 Patriots - at home - in Miami - and was badly outplayed by the great Tony Eason. Zero rings at every level. Stats don't lie. Check out his performances in all the Dolphins' post-season losses. No defense? He was drafted by a team that was just in the Super Bowl? Do you think David Woodley's passing got them there or was it the Killer B's defense?

Five times in his career Marino had a top 10 defense in points allowed. Three times he had a top five defense. Twice he had a defense that led the league in fewest points allowed. No running game? Another myth. Plenty of examples of teams that won a Super Bowl with far less of a running game than Marino had in Miami. What was the excuse at Pitt? Bobby Bowden said that Pitt's 1980 team was the greatest college football team he ever saw. Maybe check how Marino played in big games in college. https://johnbaranowski.wordpress.com/2024/05/09/the-seven-myths-about-dan-marino/

10 comments

10 Comments

OldHickoryTrojan

-6 j

Bobby Bowden is nuts if he thought that Pittsburg team was the greatest of all time...you can dump that argument in the trash can..

Edited

MLK Blvd

-6 j

Replying to

I believe Bowden said they were the greatest team he ever faced. That's his opinion, tho I would have to even doubt that given the Miami teams he faced down the road, but yeah I agree with you. Pitt wasn't even close to the greatest team of that season, let alone all time.

saturdaysarebetter

-6 j

Replying to

https://floridastate.rivals.com/news/war-chat-fsu-s-1980-win-over-no-3-pitt-one-of-biggest-in-school-history Check out the first line in the linked article. Until his retiring day, Bobby Bowden said the 1980 Pitt team was the best he ever faced as a head coach. Until his retiring day, Bobby Bowden said the 1980 Pitt team was the best he ever faced as a head coach. Until his retiring day, Bobby Bowden said the 1980 Pitt team was the best he ever faced as a head coach.

OldHickoryTrojan

-6 j

Replying to

Big difference between "played" and "Bobby Bowden said that Pitt's 1980 team was the greatest college football team he ever saw".....

TEE

-7 j

Bingo. Most overated QB ever.

MLK Blvd

-7 j

Replying to

ah, the oregon trophy case... Nice.

I wouldn't call Marino the most overrated ever. The man had probably the best release in history and made the NFL's transition from 3yds and a cloud of astroturf into a passing league enjoyable to watch. But Marino's disdain for the rushing game, which Shula surprisingly abetted, was the reason he never won a super bowl while Elway won 2 at the end of his career. I think Marino would approach things differently today, bc all of his records have since been eclipsed and his legacy will wane from here on out.

MLK Blvd

-7 j

good take. Around 1990 I started advocating that Shula should trade marino. He got away with his gunslinger mentality early on, but as defenses learned how to play against him and after his achilles injury, it became clear that he was more of a liability than an asset.

Edited

mandb

Feb 15

A bit of trivia.

Dan Marino started his college career at UW in a game at Husky Stadium in 1979. Pitt's starting QB was a mediocre Rich Trocano but was benched at halftime and replaced by Fr Dan Marino. Pitt (with Hugh Green on that team) went on to win, one of only two losses that season against a very good UW team.

The other loss was to USC late in the season, again in Husky Stadium. UW was down 24-17 late in the 4th qtr but had a 1st and goal at USC's 5 yard line. Got stuffed for the first three plays and USC sniffed out a sweep on 4th down to preserve the win.

UW went on to beat a very good Texas team in the Sun Bowl to finish 10-2, that at the time (without the glut of current bowl games) was considered the 5th best match-up in that 1979 bowl season.

BigBallss

-7 j

Replying to

Good stuff in that post mandb. I’m going to see if I can find that ‘79 USC vsUW game on YouTube. I’m 100% sure I watched because even as a kid I never ever missed a USC football game, but I don’t remember it. Good note on Marino too. That’s exactly why I love college football, you never know what FR you are watching that will someday be a HOFamer.

Less so now because we all know who the top recruits are. Watching Drew Brees play at the coliseum as a Fr is my example.

Edit:

Great goal line stand. Physical game. Trojans look big.

Edited

mandb

-6 j

Replying to

That was a heck of a find! Yup, that goal line stand was just as I remembered but I didn't realize there was that much time left to get the ball back and driving until that final (desperation) interception. But I have to understand that back in 1979, offenses just weren't advanced enough to score TDs in less than a minute.