Dan Marino

Dan Marino is the former quarterback of the Miami Dolphins. Marino is regarded by many to be the greatest quarterback to ever play the game. Marino played 17 seasons for the Miami Dolphins and by the time he retired he owned nearly every record you can hold throwing the football. He left the game as the all-time leader in passing yardage, touchdowns, attempts, and completions. Marino played in 242 games over his 17-year career, completing 4,967 out of 8,358 passes for 61,361 yards and 420 touchdowns. http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.aspx?player_id=238 Marino passed for over 3,000 yards 13 times in his career and over 4,000 yards 6 times. He threw for 300 yards 63 times and over 400 13 times. Marino was selected to the All-Pro team 8 times and earned All-AFC honors 6 times. http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.aspx?player_id=238

Marino, whose full name is Daniel Constantine Marino, Jr, was a first round pick of the Miami Dolphins in 1983. He took over the starting job early in his rookie season and proceeded to change the face of the team, the organization, and the entire league. Marino was part of the now famous 1983 NFL Draft, sometimes referred to as the Quarterback Class of 1983, in which 5 other quarterbacks were chosen before him. The quarterbacks chosen before Marino were John Elway, Todd Blackledge, Jim Kelly, Tony Eason, and Ken O'Brien. It has often been argued which of these quarterbacks was the best, but there is little doubt the top three were Elway, Kelly, and Marino. Marino captured the statistical records, yet Elway was the only one to win a Super Bowl ring. That has led many to proclaim Marino as the best quarterback to never win the Super Bowl.

Marino was the 27th overall pick of the 1983 NFL Draft and was picked up by the Miami Dolphins, where he played his entire career. Though he never guided the team to a championship, Marino set numerous NFL Records during his time with the Dolphins and was a nine-time Pro Bowl selection. Marino put the Dolphins in the playoffs numerous times, and held almost every NFL passing record, until he was overtaken by Brett Favre in 2007 for most career yards passing and most career touchdown passes.

Marino remains in the public eye as a host for the CBS NFL Pre-game show The NFL Today. Marino joined CBS in February 2002 and has enjoyed great success as a commentator. http://www.cbssports.com/cbssports/team/dmarino Marino was also a host for HBO's Inside the NFL and has many successful business ventures outside of football.

Perhaps one of Marino's greatest ventures is The Dan Marino Foundation. Founded in 1992, Marino and his wife established the Foundation to support research, treatment, and outreach programs for children with developmental disabilities and chronic illnesses. The Foundation has been widely successful raising over $22 million and benefiting thousands of children and their families. http://www.danmarinofoundation.org/about.html

• Mahalo's Guide to Miami Dolphins
• Dan Marino Official Web Site: Career Stats
  • Height: 6'4
  • Weight: 224
  • Rookie Year: 1983
  • Retired: 1999

• September 15, 1961: Born

• 1979: Attends University of Pittsburgh

• 1983: Drafted 27th overall by the Miami Dolphins

• 1983: Named National Football League rookie of the year by The Sporting News

• 1983: First rookie QB to be selected for the Pro Bowl

• 1984: Breaks six National Football League passing records

• 1984: National Football League MVP

• 1986: Quickest to reach 100 career TD passes

• 1990: Reaches 30,000 career passing yards

• 1992: Completes 3,000 passes

• 1993: Reaches 40,000 career passing yards

• 1996: First QB to reach 50,000 career passing yards

• 1998: 400th touchdown pass

• 1999: Named National Football League Man of the Year

• 2000: Retires

• 2001: Begins work at HBO's Inside the NFL

• 2002: Inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame

• 2003: Begins work at CBS' The NFL Today as an in-studio analyst

• 2005: Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame