When it comes to history and success in the National Football League, the Miami Dolphins are unparalleled. With the second most all-time wins of any NFL franchise, and the only team to complete an undefeated SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONSHIP season (that’s right New England Patriots) the Miami Dolphins have a unique mix of modern flavor and tradition that no other NFL team can match. Miami Dolphins home games are played in Dolphins Stadium, in the northern suburb of Miami Gardens, offering convenient access to residents of both Miami and Fort Lauderdale.

The Miami Dolphins are the oldest professional sports franchise in the state of Florida. Their 1966 inception into the American Football League was followed just 4 years later by the AFL/NFL merger, and the Miami Dolphins wasted no time taking the NFL by storm. Don Shula took over as head coach of the Dolphins when they joined the NFL, and would coach the team for the next 26 years, posting winning seasons 24 times and winning back to back Super Bowls in 1972 and 1973, including the fabled and unequaled undefeated 1972 season the culminated with a Super Bowl VII victory over the Washington Redskins. Shula also holds the record for most wins as a head coach, with 347.

The Miami Dolphins of the 1970’s featured 6 future Hall of Famers, including running back Larry Csonka and quarterback Bob Griese. The1980’s nonetheless featured an improvement at quarterback as Dan Marino led a high powered offense throughout the 80’s and 90’s en route to owning virtually every statistical passing record by the time he retired. Brett Favre has recently surpassed several of Marino’s records, but the Miami Dolphins continued their strong play well after Marino left the game, riding a strong defense to six consecutive playoff appearances in the late 90’s and early 2000’s.

The Miami Dolphins saw a steady decline through much of the 2000’s lead to rock bottom in 2007, when they tied an NFL record for most losses in a season with 15. The team purged the coaching staff and much of the roster the following offseason, and hired Super Bowl winning coach and personnel guru Bill Parcells to be the Vice President of Football Operations. Parcells paid instant dividends, as the Miami Dolphins earned themselves yet another NFL record by improving their win total 10 games from 2007 to 2008 under rookie head coach Tony Sparano, the largest single season turnaround in NFL history.