October 12, 2016

Highlighted Year: Bob Griese, 1970

Quarterback, Miami Dolphins


Age:  25
4th season in pro football & with Dolphins
College: Purdue
Height: 6’1”   Weight: 190

Prelude:
A multi-talented player in college who finished second in Heisman Trophy voting in 1966, Griese was taken by the Dolphins in the first round of the 1967 AFL/NFL draft. When starting QB John Stofa was lost to a broken ankle, Griese took over and had a solid rookie season as he threw for 2005 yards and 15 TD passes for a second-year franchise. He earned selection to the AFL All-Star game in 1967 and ’68, but suffered along with a struggling team until Don Shula took over as head coach in 1970. Griese didn’t have the strongest arm, but it was accurate and he proved to be a good fit in Shula’s ball-control offense.

1970 Season Summary
Appeared in all 14 games
[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]

Passing
Attempts – 245 [19]
Most attempts, game – 27 at Boston 9/20
Completions – 142 [16]
Most completions, game – 15 at Buffalo 10/18, vs. New Orleans 11/15
Yards – 2019 [13]
Most yards, game – 225 vs. New Orleans 11/15
Completion percentage – 58.0 [3, 1st in AFC]
Yards per attempt – 8.2 [2, 1st in AFC]
TD passes – 12 [15]
Most TD passes, game – 2 at Houston 9/27, vs. Oakland 10/3, at NY Jets 10/10, vs. Baltimore 11/22
Interceptions – 17 [7, tied with Bill Kilmer & Joe Kapp]
Most interceptions, game – 3 vs. Cleveland 10/25, at Philadelphia 11/8
Passer rating – 72.1 [10]
200-yard passing games – 2

Rushing
Attempts – 26
Most attempts, game – 3 (for 18 yds.) at Boston 9/20, (for 21 yds.) at Houston 9/27, (for 0 yds.) vs. NY Jets 12/13
Yards – 89
Most yards, game – 21 yards (on 3 carries) at Houston 9/27
Yards per attempt – 3.4
TDs – 2

Scoring
TDs – 2         
Points – 12

Postseason: 1 G (AFC Divisional playoff at Oakland)
Pass attempts – 27
Pass completions – 13
Passing yardage – 155
TD passes – 2
Interceptions – 1

Rushing attempts – 1
Rushing yards – 2
Rushing TDs – 0

Awards & Honors:
2nd team All-NFL: NEA
1st team All-AFC: Sporting News
Pro Bowl

Dolphins went 10-4 to finish second in the AFC East and qualified for the postseason as a Wild Card while leading the conference in rushing yards (2082). Lost AFC Divisional playoff to Oakland Raiders (21-14).

Aftermath:
Griese followed up in 1971 by passing for 2089 yards and 19 touchdowns as the Dolphins won the AFC Championship. He was a consensus first-team All-NFL as well as Pro Bowl selection, and also received MVP and Player of the Year recognition. Griese suffered a broken leg five games into the 1972 season but returned in the playoffs as the team went undefeated and won the Super Bowl. They won again in ’73 and Griese was again selected to the Pro Bowl even though the offense was ground-oriented and he passed sparingly, although to good effect. Injuries factored into a couple of lesser seasons in 1975 and ’76, with personnel factors also an issue, but Griese, now wearing glasses, came back strong in 1977 as he led the NFL in passing (87.8 rating), TD passes (22), and yards per attempt (7.2). He was again a consensus first-team All-Pro as well as Pro Bowl selection and MVP. Griese was selected to a sixth Pro Bowl in ’78 while leading the league in completion percentage (63.0) but injuries began to wear him down and ultimately ended his career in 1980. He ended up passing for 25,092 yards with 192 TD passes and the team went 92-56-3 with him behind center. The Dolphins retired Griese’s #12 and he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Class of 1990. His son Brian followed him into the NFL, also as a quarterback.

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Highlighted Years features players who were consensus first-team All-League* selections or league* or conference** leaders in the following statistical categories:

Rushing: Yards, TDs (min. 10)
Passing: Yards, Completion Pct., Yards per Attempt, TDs, Rating
Receiving: Catches, Yards, TDs (min. 10)
Scoring: TDs, Points, Field Goals (min. 5)
All-Purpose: Total Yards
Defense: Interceptions, Sacks
Kickoff Returns: Average
Punt Returns: Average
Punting: Average

*Leagues include NFL (1920 to date), AFL (1926), AFL (1936-37), AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974-75), USFL (1983-85)

**NFC/AFC since 1970