Best remembered for his quick release and powerful arm, Marino helped the Dolphins become consistent postseason contenders, leading them to the playoffs ten times and one Super Bowl appearance in XIX, although a title victory ultimately eluded him during his career. Marino is considered by many to be one of the greatest players to never win a Super Bowl and has the most career victories of quarterbacks not to win a title at 155.
A nine-time Pro Bowl selection, six-time first (3) or second (3) team All-Pro, and All-AFC six times, Marino was voted NFL Rookie of the Year by Sporting News. The following season in 1984, Marino was the NFL Most Valuable Player (MVP), when he set single-season records of 5,084 passing yards, 48 touchdown passes, nine 300-yard passing games, and four 400-yard passing games. He was voted the 1994 NFL Comeback Player of the Year, and the 1998 NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year. At the time of his retirement, Marino held more than 40 NFL single-season and career passing records (many of which have since been surpassed), including career passing attempts (8,358), completions (4,967), passing yards (61,361), and touchdown passes (420). Marino was the first quarterback in NFL history to reach 5,000 yards passing in a season (1984); 50,000 and 60,000 career passing yards respectively, and also the first quarterback to reach 40-plus touchdown passes in a season (48 in 1984), and 400 career touchdown passes.
Marino was enshrined into the Miami Dolphins Honor Roll immediately after his retirement in 2000, inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003, inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2005 in his first year of eligibility, and is currently one of only three former Miami Dolphins to have his jersey number retired. In 2019, Marino was named to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team as one of the 10 greatest quarterbacks in NFL history, as determined by a panel of coaches and media members.
Marino's selection status in the 1983 NFL draft plummeted after his weaker senior season at Pitt and rumors of recreational drug use. Five other quarterbacks—Ken O'Brien, Tony Eason, Todd Blackledge, and Hall of Famers Jim Kelly and John Elway—were drafted ahead of him in the first round. Bill Hillgrove, who was with the Marino family on draft day, later recalled that when the New York Jets selected O'Brien, Marino "became visibly ill". (O'Brien, who played for Division II Cal-Davis, was so obscure that Marino later asked his agent Marvin Demoff "Who is Ken O'Brien?")
The Miami Dolphins chose Marino as the 27th pick in the first round. He did not expect to be available for the team to draft, so he never spoke to head coach Don Shula or anyone else from the Dolphins before the coach called after the selection. Opinion was divided on the wisdom of the team's decision; Chris Berman said that Shula was "the best", but Paul Zimmerman was skeptical of the coaching staff's ability to help Marino "overcome the problems he's had". Shula later said that being passed up by so many teams "motivated [Marino] to show everybody else what a mistake that they had made".
Marino was the first draft pick in the history of the United States Football League, selected by the Los Angeles Express. He did not sign with the team, choosing instead to sign with the Dolphins. After starting the season as a backup to incumbent starter David Woodley, Marino was given his first NFL start in Week 6 versus the Buffalo Bills. Marino and Miami lost that game 38–35 in overtime. As a rookie, Marino set several records: he posted a 96.0 passer rating, he was selected to the Pro Bowl as a rookie, he had the lowest percentage of passes intercepted with 2.03, he was the only rookie quarterback to lead a conference in passing, and he had the highest passing completion percentage with 58.45. The Dolphins finished the season with a 12–4 record and advanced to the AFC divisional playoffs, where Marino threw two touchdown passes in his playoff debut. However, he also threw two interceptions as the team lost to the 9–7 Seattle Seahawks, 27–20.
In his second season, Marino broke six NFL full-season passing records, including the records for most touchdown passes (48, surpassed by Peyton Manning in 2004) and most passing yards (5,084, surpassed by Drew Brees in 2011), and was selected as the NFL's Most Valuable Player. Marino led the league in completions, yards, and TD passes and the Dolphins finished with a 14–2 regular-season record, clinching home-field advantage for the playoffs. In the Divisional round, the Dolphins avenged their playoff loss of the previous season to the Seattle Seahawks 31–10 behind Marino's 262 passing yards and 3 touchdowns. The next week the Dolphins defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship Game 45–28. In that game, Marino set AFC Championship Game records with 421 passing yards and 4 touchdowns, despite throwing his last pass of the game with 11:07 still remaining on the clock. Both records still stand as of 2024.
In 1985, Marino threw for 4,137 yards and 30 touchdowns while leading the Dolphins to the AFC Championship game. On September 29, Marino threw for 390 yards and 3 touchdowns in the Dolphins' 30–26 victory over the Denver Broncos, in the first matchup between Marino and Broncos quarterback John Elway. Then on December 2, Marino threw for 270 yards and 3 touchdowns against the vaunted Chicago Bears defense in a 38–24 victory. The loss was the only one that the Bears experienced that season. Marino again led the league in completions, yards, and touchdown passes and was named first-team All-Pro in 1985.
On September 7, 1986, 8 days shy of his 25th birthday, Marino threw his 100th touchdown pass in a 50–28 loss to San Diego. Marino accomplished that feat in just 44 games- the fastest in NFL history. In the 1986 season, Marino threw for 4,746 yards and 44 touchdowns. Marino became the first QB in NFL history to record three consecutive seasons of 30 or more touchdown passes; 48 in 1984, 30 in 1985, and 44 in 1986. Marino again led the league in completions, yards and touchdown passes (the first and only QB in NFL history to lead in all three categories for three consecutive seasons) and was named 1986 first-team All-Pro.
In 1988, Marino threw for 4,434 yards and 28 touchdowns. As a result of his 4,434 yards passing, Marino became the first QB in NFL history to throw for 4,000 or more yards in four different seasons. Marino had been tied with Dan Fouts for the most 4,000 yard passing seasons with three.
In 1992, Marino again led the Dolphins to the AFC Championship game while passing for 4,116 and 24 touchdowns. His 4,116 passing yards led the entire NFL and marked the fifth time in his NFL career that he led the league in passing yards.
In 1993, Miami was strongly favored at the start of the year to make it back to the AFC championship game and possibly the Super Bowl. However, after throwing a swing pass at a game in Cleveland, Marino, who was untouched on the play, crumpled to the ground in pain with a torn Achilles tendon and was out for the season. Marino later said, "I felt like I got kicked". Backup quarterback Scott Mitchell had an impressive series of starts before suffering an injury of his own. Steve DeBerg started the last 4 games of the season. Mitchell signed a free-agent contract with the Detroit Lions, and Miami signed veteran quarterback Bernie Kosar from the Dallas Cowboys as a backup. Wearing a special shoe on one foot, and having a right calf that was visibly atrophied, Marino was the starting quarterback at the opening of the 1994 season.
In the 1994 season opener, a home game versus the New England Patriots and quarterback Drew Bledsoe, the two quarterbacks put up a combined 894 yards (Marino, 473 yards; Bledsoe, 421 yards) and nine passing touchdowns (Marino, 5; Bledsoe, 4), with Miami winning 39–35. Later in the season, Marino led a comeback win on the road against the New York Jets (28–24), a game famous for Marino's execution of a fake spike for the winning touchdown pass, a play known as "The Clock Play". The Dolphins finished 10–6 that year, and Marino passed for 4,453 yards and was named the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year by the Pro Football Writers Association. After missing the postseason in 1993, Miami came back to the playoffs in 1994. Placing third overall in the AFC, Miami was pitted against the Kansas City Chiefs in what became the final NFL game played by Montana. Marino threw 257 yards and two touchdown passes, contributing to Miami's 27–17 win. The Dolphins reached the AFC Divisional Playoff round, where they competed with the San Diego Chargers. Three touchdown passes by Marino in the first half allowed the Dolphins to lead 21–6, before the Chargers staged a comeback and took the lead toward the end of the fourth quarter. In the final moments of the game, Marino tried to set up a good position for a field goal, but with little time left at the Chargers' 30-yard line, Pete Stoyanovich was forced to attempt a 48-yard field goal. Stoyanovich missed, ending the game with a 22–21 loss for Miami.
Marino started in 14 out of 16 games in the 1995 season. He suffered a hip injury in week 6 against the Indianapolis Colts and was replaced by Bernie Kosar in the following two games. Throughout the regular season, Marino threw 3,668 yards and 24 touchdowns. Despite falling to 9–7 and to third place in the AFC East, the Dolphins again advanced to the playoffs because they placed sixth in the AFC. In the wildcard round against the Buffalo Bills, Miami dominated in passing – with Marino passing 432 yards – while Buffalo was far ahead of Miami for rushing yards (341 yards). In terms of scoring, Buffalo held a wide lead throughout the game. The Dolphins remained scoreless until the fourth quarter, when they scored 22 points, which included two touchdown passes from Marino. However, Miami fell well short of a comeback and lost 37–22.
On November 10, 1996, against Indianapolis, Marino became the first QB in NFL History to throw for 50,000 career passing yards.
On November 29, 1998, against New Orleans, Marino threw for three touchdowns. His second touchdown pass, a 7 yarder to wide receiver OJ McDuffie, gave him 400 for his career as Marino became the first QB in NFL History to reach 400 career TD passes.
The Dolphins opened the 1999 season on September 13 at the defending Super Bowl champions Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football. Marino threw for 215 yards and two touchdowns in the Dolphins' 38–21 victory. For that performance, Marino earned AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors. Marino earned that honor again on October 10 as he threw for 393 yards and two touchdowns in a thrilling 34–31 comeback victory over the Indianapolis Colts. On October 17 against the New England Patriots, Marino became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for 60,000 career passing yards. He missed the next five games to a shoulder injury before returning in Week 12. In the 1999 season, he appeared in 11 games and finished with 2,448 passing yards, 12 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions.
Before the 2000 season, Marino decided to retire, after declining offers from Minnesota, Tampa Bay, and his hometown of Pittsburgh when the Dolphins declined his option on his contract. Marino later admitted that he seriously considered the offer from the Vikings, but that he turned it down not because of his arm, but because he was not sure that his legs could take another season. He also appreciated the fact that unlike many of his contemporaries, he got to play his entire career with one team.
During Marino's career, the Dolphins were perennial playoff contenders, reaching the postseason in 10 of his 17 seasons. He was selected to play in nine Pro Bowls (1983–1987, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1995), seven times as a starter, but due to injuries he only played in two of the games (1984, 1992). He was named first- or second-team All-Pro six times and earned All-AFC honors six times.[54] Marino won all three major individual awards: NFL MVP (1984); NFL Comeback Player of the Year (1994); and NFL Man of the Year (1998), which recognizes charitable work off the field.
In 1999, Marino was ranked 27th on The Sporting News list of the 100 greatest football players, making him the highest-ranking Dolphins player. In 2010, he was ranked number 25 on the NFL's Top 100 Greatest Players list. Marino was known for his quick release, and despite the fact that he was not skilled at scrambling, Marino possessed a natural awareness in the pocket, often sliding a step or two to avoid the pass rush. As of the conclusion of the 2020 NFL regular season, Marino's 155 wins rank seventh among NFL quarterbacks, behind Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger, and John Elway. Marino is also the winningest quarterback without a Super Bowl victory.
On Sunday, September 17, 2000, at halftime of the Dolphins-Baltimore Ravens game at Pro Player Stadium, Dan Marino's jersey number of 13 was retired. The only other Dolphins jersey number retired at the time was Bob Griese's #12. Since then #39, Larry Csonka, has been retired as well. Marino joined the Dolphins Honor Roll the same day. In a year of accolades from the franchise he led for many years, the Dolphins also installed a life-size bronze statue of Marino at Pro Player Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) and renamed Stadium Street to Dan Marino Boulevard.
In 2003, Marino was honored for his outstanding NCAA career at Pitt with an induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. In early 2004, Marino briefly returned to the Miami Dolphins as Senior Vice President of Football Operations, but resigned from the newly created position only three weeks later, saying that the role was not in the best interest of either his family or the Dolphin organization. Marino was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2005, one of only four Dolphins to be elected in their first year of eligibility (Jim Langer, Paul Warfield, Jason Taylor). He was inducted into the Hall of Fame on August 7, 2005, and was introduced by his oldest son, Daniel. During his induction speech, Dan threw "one last pass" to former teammate Mark Clayton, who was sitting in the audience.
Marino was an analyst for CBS's Sunday pregame show The NFL Today from 2002 to 2013. On February 18, 2014, it was announced that Marino, along with Shannon Sharpe were being relieved of their duties as on-air commentators on The NFL Today and were being replaced by Tony Gonzalez and Bart Scott. He was formerly a studio analyst on HBO's Inside the NFL, from 2002 to 2007.
On August 24, 2014, Marino announced he would return to the Dolphins as a special adviser.
Current Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has also revealed that Marino regularly attends Dolphins quarterback meetings to give his opinion and input on how to be a better quarterback.
In 1997, Marino became involved in a marketing role with Team Cheever of the Indy Racing League through FirstPlus Mortgage, the sponsor of the car. In 1998, Marino co-owned a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing team with driver Bill Elliott, creating Elliott-Marino Motorsports. The team's car number was #13, Marino's uniform number, and had primary sponsorship from FirstPlus Mortgage, whose company colors, coincidentally, were turquoise, orange, and white – similar to aqua and coral, the team colors of the Miami Dolphins. The team chose rookie driver Jerry Nadeau to pilot the car at the start of the season; he was later released and the team went through a rotation of drivers. The team failed to qualify for several races, but did post a top-5 finish at Phoenix International Raceway late in the season with Ted Musgrave driving. The team only lasted the 1998 season and closed afterward.
The Dan Marino Foundation was established in 1992 by Marino and his wife, Claire, after their son, Michael, was diagnosed with autism. The foundation has distributed over $22 million to research, services, and treatment programs serving children with neurodevelopment disabilities. The Dan Marino Center, which opened in 1995 along with the Miami Children's Hospital, is an integrated neurodevelopmental center specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of children at risk for developmental and psychological problems. The center saw more than 48,000 children last year alone. Marino has teamed with other celebrities to raise awareness about autistic spectrum disorders, including fellow NFL quarterback Doug Flutie, whose son also has an autism diagnosis.
On November 7, 2005, the National Basketball Association's Miami Heat honored Marino's charitable works and recognized his service to South Florida with a halftime tribute, as well as a large donation to the Marino Foundation. Though a Heat jersey with his name and #13 was unveiled, this did not constitute retirement of his number by the Heat, and is currently worn by Heat big man Bam Adebayo.
On March 23, 2010, The Dan Marino Foundation held its first "Walk about Autism". Over 6000 walkers participated, as well as 420 volunteers provided by the Miami Dolphins Special Teams.
The money raised benefited several funds including the Autism Societies of Miami-Dade and Broward; the University of Miami-Nova Southeastern University Center for Autism and Related Disabilities; the Florida Atlantic University Center for Autism and Related Disabilities; and the Dan Marino Foundation.
Marino acted in the 1994 comedy Ace Ventura: Pet Detective alongside Jim Carrey and Courteney Cox where he played himself. Marino made a cameo appearance in the Adam Sandler film Little Nicky wherein he asked Satan for a Super Bowl ring. In 1999, he voiced himself in a guest-starring role in The Simpsons Season ten episode "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday". Marino also had cameo roles in Holy Man and Bad Boys II. He worked as a project consultant on Oliver Stone's Any Given Sunday, and some observers noticed a resemblance between him and Dennis Quaid's character, Jack Rooney. Marino's actual house was used as the fictional quarterback's house in the film.
In 1995, Hootie and the Blowfish featured Marino in their music video for their single "Only Wanna Be with You".
Musician MJ Lenderman has a song titled "Dan Marino" on his 2022 album Boat Songs.
Marino was featured in advertisement campaigns for Hooters, NutriSystem weight loss programs, Maroone, Papa John's, Nutrasource.com, and Empi Select (a TENS device). Previously, Marino endorsed Isotoner gloves and FirstPlus Mortgage against whom he later filed suit due to contracts related to his racing team.
In April 2012, Marino became the AARP's "Men's Life Ambassador", through which he planned to share his point of view and expertise on a variety of men's interests, including health, fitness, sports, lifestyle, entrepreneurship, aging, and community service, primarily through the website.
Marino was the cover athlete on Front Page Sports: Football Pro '98. A video game featuring Marino's likeness and sponsorship, similar to John Madden Football, was announced for the Sega Genesis at CES 1993. The game, referred to as both Dan Marino Football and Dan Marino's Touchdown Football, never released.
In 1985, Marino married Claire D. Veazey of Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania, at St. Regis Catholic Church, across the street from the home of Marino's parents. The couple have six children together.
Marino was awarded an honorary doctorate degree in broadcast journalism by his alma mater, the University of Pittsburgh, in 2005. He delivered the commencement speech at the university's 2008 graduation ceremony.
In January 2013, Marino admitted to fathering a child with CBS employee Donna Savattere in 2005, a fact he only shared with his wife. He previously paid Savattere several million dollars to keep the news of their daughter from the public.
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