The only team in National Football League history to finish a season undefeated and untied were the 1972 Miami Dolphins. They went 14-0 during the regular season. Then they defeated the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers in the playoffs, and completed the season by defeating the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl VII.

Legend has it that after losing to the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl VI, head coach Don Shula talked throughout the off-season with his players about the desire to, "not lose another game again." Despite the loss of Griese to a fractured leg for most of the season, the Dolphins were able to win games through two significant areas of strength. One was their uncompromising ability to run the football effectively. The backfield tandem of Larry Csonka and Mercury Morris became the first in league history to rush for 1,000 yards each in the same season. The other was their suffocating defense, nicknamed the 'no name defense', which used great athleticism and zone schemes to stifle opponents.

Twice before 1972, the Chicago Bears had finished the regular season unbeaten, both in 1934 and 1942. But both times they lost the NFL Championship game. Since 1972, six teams have won 12 or more games to start the season and flirted with equaling the Dolphins mark. All six times, the team in question came up short:

1. 1985: The Bears went 12-0 before losing to the Dolphins. The Bears would win Super Bowl XX that season.
2. 1998: The Broncos went 13-0 before losing to the Giants. The Broncos would win Super Bowl XXXIII that season.
3. 2005: The Colts went 12-0 before losing to the Chargers
4. 2007: The Patriots went 16-0 and won 2 playoff games before losing to the Giants in Super Bowl XLII
5. 2009: The Colts went 14-0 before losing to the Jets
6. 2009: The Saints went 13-0 before losing to the Cowboys. The Saints would win Super Bowl XLIV that season, defeating the Colts.

• |- bgcolor="#ffcbcb"

• | colspan="8" align="center" | 1972 Dolphins Schedule

• |- bgcolor="#efefef"

• !Week!!Date!!Opponent!!Score

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 1

• |September 17, 1972||at Kansas City||20-10

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 2

• |September 24, 1972||vs Houston||34-13

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 3

• |October 1, 1972||at Minnesota||16-14

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 4

• |October 8, 1972||at NY Jets||27-17

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 5

• |October 15, 1972||vs San Diego||24-10

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 6

• |October 22, 1972||vs Buffalo||24-23

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 7

• |October 29, 1972||at Baltimore||23-0

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 8

• |November 5, 1972||at Buffalo||30-16

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 9

• |November 12, 1972||vs New England||52-0

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 10

• |November 19, 1972||vs NY Jets||28-24

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 11

• |November 27, 1972||vs St. Louis||31-10

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 12

• |December 3, 1972||at New England||37-21

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 13

• |December 10, 1972||at NY Giants||23-13

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Week 14

• |December 16, 1972||at Baltimore||16-0

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Division Round

• |December 24, 1972||vs Cleveland||20-14

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| AFC Championship

• |December 31, 1972||at Pittsburgh||21-17

• |- align="left"

• |align="left"| Super Bowl VII

• |January 14, 1973||vs Washington||14-7

• |}

• </div>
  

• Super Bowl played at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum