# 1979 Miami Dolphins season

The 1979 Miami Dolphins season was the franchise's 10th season in the National Football League, the 14th overall, and the 10th under head coach Don Shula. Prior to the start of the season, the Dolphins re-signed Larry Csonka who left to join the WFL after the 1974 season. Despite struggles from Bob Griese all year, the Dolphins finished 10-6 and won their first division title in five years. Among the season highlights were the Dolphins' 19th and 20th consecutive wins over the Buffalo Bills. For the entire decade of the 1970s (1970–79), the Dolphins hold a perfect 20–0 record over the Bills, which contributed to O. J. Simpson never seeing any postseason success in his career. In the Divisional Playoffs, the Dolphins were no match for the Pittsburgh Steelers who jumped out to a 20–0 lead in the 1st Quarter to win 34–14 on their way to their second straight Super Bowl title.
The Dolphins failed to have a Pro Bowler this season.

## Offseason
### NFL draft

1979 Miami Dolphins draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College |
| 1 | 24 | Jon Giesler | Offensive tackle | Michigan |
| 2 | 53 | Jeff Toews | Guard | Washington |
| 3 | 61 | Tony Nathan * | Running back | Alabama |
| 3 | 63 | Mel Land | Linebacker | Michigan State |
| 3 | 65 | Ronnie Lee | Offensive tackle | Baylor |
| 4 | 107 | Steve Howell | Fullback | Baylor |
| 5 | 134 | Don Bessillieu | Defensive back | Georgia Tech |
| 6 | 162 | Steve Lindquist | Guard | Nebraska |
| 7 | 189 | Uwe von Schamann | Placekicker | Oklahoma |
| 8 | 206 | Jeff Groth | Wide receiver | Bowling Green |
| 8 | 215 | Glenn Blackwood | Defensive back | Texas |
| 9 | 244 | Jeff Weston | Offensive tackle | Notre Dame |
| 10 | 258 | Jerome Stanton | Defensive back | Michigan State |
| 10 | 272 | Mike Kozlowski | Defensive back | Colorado |
| 11 | 299 | Mike Blanton | Defensive end | Georgia Tech |
| 12 | 327 | Larry Fortner | Quarterback | Miami (OH) |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career ||||||
1979 Undrafted Free Agents of note :
| Player | Position | College |
| Joel Williams | Linebacker | Wisconsin–La Crosse |

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap |
| 1 | September 2 | at Buffalo Bills | W 9–7 | 1–0 | Rich Stadium | Recap |
| 2 | September 9 | Seattle Seahawks | W 19–10 | 2–0 | Miami Orange Bowl | Recap |
| 3 | September 16 | at Minnesota Vikings | W 27–12 | 3–0 | Metropolitan Stadium | Recap |
| 4 | September 23 | Chicago Bears | W 31–16 | 4–0 | Miami Orange Bowl | Recap |
| 5 | September 30 | at New York Jets | L 27–33 | 4–1 | Shea Stadium | Recap |
| 6 | October 8 | at Oakland Raiders | L 3–13 | 4–2 | Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum | Recap |
| 7 | October 14 | Buffalo Bills | W 17–7 | 5–2 | Miami Orange Bowl | Recap |
| 8 | October 21 | at New England Patriots | L 13–28 | 5–3 | Schaefer Stadium | Recap |
| 9 | October 28 | Green Bay Packers | W 27–7 | 6–3 | Miami Orange Bowl | Recap |
| 10 | November 5 | Houston Oilers | L 6–9 | 6–4 | Miami Orange Bowl | Recap |
| 11 | November 11 | Baltimore Colts | W 19–0 | 7–4 | Miami Orange Bowl | Recap |
| 12 | November 18 | at Cleveland Browns | L 24–30 (OT) | 7–5 | Cleveland Stadium | Recap |
| 13 | November 25 | at Baltimore Colts | W 28–24 | 8–5 | Memorial Stadium | Recap |
| 14 | November 29 | New England Patriots | W 39–24 | 9–5 | Miami Orange Bowl | Recap |
| 15 | December 9 | at Detroit Lions | W 28–10 | 10–5 | Pontiac Silverdome | Recap |
| 16 | December 15 | New York Jets | L 24–27 | 10–6 | Miami Orange Bowl | Recap |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |||||||

### Standings

AFC East :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Miami Dolphins$^{(3)}$ | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 5–3 | 6–6 | 341 | 257 | L1 |
| New England Patriots | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 4–4 | 6–6 | 411 | 326 | W1 |
| New York Jets | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 4–4 | 5–7 | 337 | 383 | W3 |
| Buffalo Bills | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 4–4 | 5–7 | 268 | 279 | L3 |
| Baltimore Colts | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 3–5 | 4–10 | 271 | 351 | W1 |

## Playoffs
### AFC Divisional Playoff: at Pittsburgh Steelers

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Dolphins | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
| Steelers | 20 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 34 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
* Date: Sunday December 30, 1979
* Game time: 12:30 pm EST
* Game attendance: 50,214
* Referee: Cal Lepore
* TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui (play by play), John Brodie (color commentator)

## Awards and honors

Larry Csonka returned to the Dolphins in 1979 for one last season before retiring, after leaving in 1975 for the World Football League and spending the next three seasons after with the New York Giants. He led the team with 837 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns, in addition to one receiving touchdown. His return led to him being named the NFL Comeback Player of the Year.