On this date, the Miami Dolphins defeated the Washington Redskins 14-7 in Super Bowl VII, completing the NFL's only perfect season at 17-0. Despite a late scare from kicker Garo Yepremian's infamous gaffe, the Dolphins' defense held strong to secure their place in football immortality.
On a sun-drenched California afternoon at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the Miami Dolphins stood on the precipice of history. With a 14-7 victory over the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl VII, they completed a 17-0 season, becoming the first and still the only team in modern NFL history to finish a season undefeated and untied. More than five decades later, that achievement remains untouched.
Despite entering Super Bowl VII with a perfect 14-0 regular season record and playoff victories over Cleveland and Pittsburgh, the Dolphins were somehow one-point underdogs to Washington. Oddsmakers doubted Miami's strength of schedule and questioned whether they could recover from their embarrassing 24-3 loss to Dallas in Super Bowl VI the previous year.
The Dolphins had their own doubts to overcome. In Week 5 of the regular season, starting quarterback Bob Griese suffered a broken ankle and dislocated ankle joint. Many thought the perfect season would end there. Instead, 38-year-old backup Earl Morrall, nicknamed "Old Man," stepped in and led Miami to nine straight victories.
The Dolphins' defense became known as the "No-Name Defense," a nickname coined by Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry because the unit lacked household names. Led by linebacker Nick Buoniconti, defensive tackle Manny Fernandez, and safety Jake Scott, they quietly became one of the most dominant defensive units in NFL history.
In Super Bowl VII, Fernandez recorded an astonishing 17 tackles. Scott intercepted two passes, earning him Super Bowl MVP honors. The defense held Washington to just 228 total yards and forced multiple turnovers in the championship game.
Before 90,182 fans at the Coliseum, Miami struck first. In the first quarter, Griese, who had been reinserted as starter for the playoffs, connected with Howard Twilley on a 28-yard touchdown pass. The Dolphins led 7-0.
Early in the second quarter, Miami mounted another scoring drive. After Nick Buoniconti intercepted Washington quarterback Billy Kilmer and returned it to the Redskins' 28-yard line, the Dolphins capitalized. Griese completed a clutch 19-yard pass to tight end Jim Mandich, who made a diving catch at the 2-yard line. Two plays later, running back Jim Kiick scored on a 1-yard touchdown run with just 18 seconds left in the half. Miami led 14-0 at halftime.
The game remained 14-0 deep into the fourth quarter. Miami's defense had been impenetrable, and coach Don Shula saw an opportunity for poetic symmetry: a 17-0 final score to cap a 17-0 season.
With just over two minutes remaining, instead of going for it on fourth down, Shula called for a 42-yard field goal attempt by kicker Garo Yepremian. The kick was blocked by Washington's Bill Brundige. What happened next became one of the most infamous plays in Super Bowl history.
Yepremian picked up the bouncing ball and attempted to throw a pass. The ball slipped from his hand, flying into the air. When he tried to bat it away, he instead batted it directly to Washington cornerback Mike Bass, who caught it and raced 49 yards for a touchdown. Suddenly, with 2:07 remaining, Miami's lead was cut to 14-7.
Washington chose to kick deep rather than attempt an onside kick. The Dolphins' offense managed to run some clock but were forced to punt with just over a minute remaining. The Redskins got the ball back at their own 30-yard line with one final chance to tie the game.
But the No-Name Defense lived up to its reputation. After two incomplete passes and a 4-yard loss on a swing pass, Washington faced fourth-and-14. Kilmer dropped back to pass but was sacked as time expired. The Dolphins had done it. Final score: 14-7.
The perfect season was complete. Seventeen wins, zero losses, zero ties. A record that has stood for more than 50 years and may never be matched.
The 1972 Dolphins featured eight future Pro Football Hall of Famers: linebacker Nick Buoniconti, running back Larry Csonka, quarterback Bob Griese, center Jim Langer, guard Larry Little, wide receiver Paul Warfield, coach Don Shula, and director of player personnel Bobby Beathard.
Csonka and Mercury Morris became the first teammates to each rush for over 1,000 yards in a single season. In Super Bowl VII, Csonka rushed for 112 yards on 15 carries, methodically wearing down the Washington defense.
The Dolphins would repeat as Super Bowl champions the following year, though they finished 12-2 in the regular season. But it was the 1972 perfect season that would define them forever.
Only three other teams have reached the Super Bowl undefeated in the modern era: the 1934 and 1942 Chicago Bears, both of whom lost in the championship game, and the 2007 New England Patriots, who entered Super Bowl XLII at 18-0 but were upset by the New York Giants.
Every year since 1972, as the NFL season progresses and undefeated teams begin to fall, members of the '72 Dolphins have been known to quietly toast with champagne. Their record remains intact, a monument to one perfect season when everything went right, when an "Old Man" quarterback and a "No-Name Defense" combined to achieve what no team had done before and none have done since.
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