Schedule Note: Intra-division opponents are in
bold text. Source:
Standings Game summaries Week 1 at Denver Broncos The Dolphins opened the season on the road against the defending
Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos. The Broncos were without their longtime quarterback
John Elway, who announced his retirement during the off-season.
Brian Griese, son of former Dolphins quarterback
Bob Griese, was Denver's starting quarterback, throwing a 61-yard touchdown pass to
Ed McCaffrey early in the 1st quarter. Griese would play inconsistently for the rest of the game and was sacked twice, while
Dan Marino was sacked zero times. In the 4th quarter, Griese fumbled the ball, with
Jason Taylor recovering it and running it into the end zone for a touchdown.
Week 2 vs. Arizona Cardinals The Dolphins' defense picked off Cardinals quarterback
Jake Plummer four times during the game. Arizona only scored one touchdown during the game, a 34-yard interception return by
Rob Fredrickson in the 2nd quarter.
Week 4 at Buffalo Bills Week 5 at Indianapolis Colts The Dolphins were trailing 31–22 in the 4th quarter before staging a furious comeback with just under 3:30 left to play, scoring 12 unanswered points in the span of nearly 3 minutes. The run started with a 43-yard field goal from
Olindo Mare with 3:20 left. With 1:54 left, Miami's defense forced
Peyton Manning to run out the end zone, resulting in a safety. On the ensuing drive,
Dan Marino led the offense down the field, capping it off with a 2-yard pass to
Oronde Gadsden for the game-winning score. The Dolphins' defense sealed the game, with
Terrell Buckley intercepting a Manning pass on the Colts' final drive of the game. Miami compiled 469 yards of offense and committed no turnovers. Marino threw for 393 yards while two players finished with over 100 yards receiving: Gadsden with 123 yards and
Tony Martin with 166.
Week 6 at New England Patriots Dan Marino's only completion of the game was on a 8-yard pass that put him over 60,000 passing yards for his career. On Marino's second pass attempt, he was hit by
Lawyer Milloy, with
Andy Katzenmoyer intercepting the ball and returning it 57 yards for a touchdown. On the following drive, Marino would attempt a short pass that fell short of his intended receiver. Coach Jimmy Johnson would pull Marino from the game due to a possible shoulder injury; in the week heading into the game, Marino thought he might have injured his right trapezius. Marino was replaced by
Damon Huard, whose first pass was intercepted by
Ty Law and returned 27 yards for a touchdown. Despite the rocky start, Huard would lead the Dolphins to a 31–30 comeback victory, throwing a 5-yard touchdown pass to fullback
Stanley Pritchett with 23 seconds left in the game for the game-winning score.
Week 7 vs. Philadelphia Eagles With
Dan Marino out due to injury,
Damon Huard started at quarterback for the Dolphins, his first NFL start.
Week 8 at Oakland Raiders Damon Huard started at quarterback for the second week in a row. After having thrown a
pick six in each of the previous two games, Huard committed no turnovers against Oakland.
Week 9 vs. Tennessee Titans The Dolphins' defense shutout the Titans, picking off
Steve McNair three times. This was one of only three games that Tennessee would lose during the regular season.
Week 10 at Buffalo Bills Damon Huard struggled throughout the game, only completing 36% of his passes for 65 yards with no touchdowns and one interception. This was the only game of the season Miami would lose with Huard starting at quarterback.
Week 11 vs. New England Patriots Miami's defense picked off
Drew Bledsoe five times. This was the last game of the season
Damon Huard would start at quarterback, as
Dan Marino would return for the following game four days later. Miami finished 4–1 with Huard as starter.
Week 12 at Dallas Cowboys NFL on Thanksgiving Day Dan Marino's first game after returning from injury was a disaster. Marino threw five interceptions, one of which was returned 46 yards by
Dexter Coakley in the 3rd quarter for the first score of the game. The Dolphins' defense tried to help keep the team in the game, shutting out the Cowboys' offense for three quarters. The game's only offensive score came in the 4th, with
Troy Aikman throwing a 65-yard touchdown pass to
Rocket Ismail.
Week 13 vs. Indianapolis Colts The Dolphins trailed 24–10 at halftime, but tied the game twice in the 4th quarter, including a 32-yard field goal from
Olindo Mare with 0:36 left in regulation. However, Indianapolis kicker
Mike Vanderjagt made a 53-yard field goal as time expired to give the Colts a 37–34 victory.
Week 14 at New York Jets The Dolphins had a 13–6 lead at the start of the 4th quarter, but the team collapsed in the final quarter of play. The Jets scored 22 unanswered points in the 4th quarter, including a 67-yard interception return by
Omar Stoutmire.
Week 15 vs. San Diego Chargers Neither team managed to a score a touchdown during the game. The Dolphins' defense held the Chargers to 186 yards of total offense and forced one turnover. This was the last regular season game
Dan Marino would win in his career.
Week 16 vs. New York Jets Week 17 at Washington Redskins Dan Marino started at quarterback, but was pulled from the game and replaced by
Damon Huard; Marino finished 11-of-24 for 118 yards with one interception. Despite the loss, the Dolphins still qualified for the playoffs as the Chiefs lost earlier in the day to the Raiders. ==Playoffs==