Giesler was selected by the
Miami Dolphins in the first round as the 24th overall pick in the
1979 NFL draft. When Current retired after the 1979 season, Giesler became a starter for the Dolphins at the left tackle position during the
1980 NFL season. Between 1980 and 1988, Giesler appeared in 110 games for the Dolphins, 105 of them as the starting left tackle. In June 1984, Giesler rejected an offer to play for the
Michigan Panthers in the
United States Football League (USFL) for a reported $900,000 over three years. During the 1984 season, Giesler played on the best pass-blocking line in the NFL, and Dolphins' coach
Don Shula rated Giesler as "his steadiest offensive lineman." In 1986, Giesler missed the first six games of the season after undergoing knee surgery and then injured the knee again late in the season, limiting his playing time to a career-low seven games during the
1986 NFL season. Giesler considered retiring prior to the 1988 season and conducted a two-month holdout before signing a two-year contract with the Dolphins for a reported $657,500. In 10 seasons with the Dolphins from 1979 to 1988, Giesler played in two Super Bowls (
Super Bowl XVII and
Super Bowl XIX) and was twice selected by the
United Press International (UPI) as a second-team All-AFC player. He appeared in a total of 126 regular season NFL games. ==Later years==