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The 1972 Dolphins reunited Sunday to celebrate the 35th anniversary of their accomplishment. Shula was there, Super Bowl ring on finger, saying he thought the Patriots were playing by the rules. He was careful not to repeat his earlier statement that a perfect season might be tainted by the spying controversy, and he said he would be the first to call Patriots coach Bill Belichick to congratulate him should his team finish 19-0.
The gathering gave the graying Dolphins plenty of opportunity to ponder the possibility of sharing history with the Patriots and to speculate on the tantalizing possibility that these Dolphins, who had not won a game since Dec. 10, 2006, might preserve their honor for at least one more year.
"This is not exactly a Dan Marino-led team that did this to the Bears in 1985," said Nick Buoniconti, a former Dolphins — and Boston Patriots — linebacker who was on the 1972 team. "Tom Brady would have to have appendicitis, and half the defense would have to have dysentery for them to lose. This is a great football team. The Dolphins are not even a good football team. The chance of them beating the Patriots is slim and none."
Indeed, the 1985 Dolphins were on their way to a 12-4 season and a loss in the American Football Conference championship game to the Patriots. The 2007 Dolphins are enduring a season memorable only for its futility.
They have been so ghastly that when asked about reports that the owner, Wayne Huizenga, was considering selling the team, Buoniconti said, "If I owned this team, I'd be depressed."
This is a team bereft of much talent, hammered by injuries and so bad that the first-year coach, Cam Cameron, may not keep his job. Jim Mandich, a tight end for the 1972 Dolphins and now a team broadcaster, said a victory over the Patriots would be the equivalent of Appalachian State beating Michigan.
A few of the 1972 players toast one another when the last undefeated team falls each season. They will not be on the sideline this time, and even their football descendants are not sure it is time to put the champagne on ice.
"It would be especially meaningful if anybody puts an end to it," Csonka said.
"To insinuate that the Dolphins," he added, pausing, "that's a pretty long stretch from where the Dolphins are right now."
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