It has been quite a while since the Miami Dolphins won a playoff game. Bill Clinton was still the President of the United States, and Dan Marino was less than a year removed from playing in his final NFL game. Let’s examine Miami’s postseason history and last playoff win.
Miami Dolphins’ Storied Playoff History
The Dolphins have been to the playoffs 25 times. Miami’s most dominant runs of regular-season football came in the 1970s and 1990s when the team qualified for the postseason a whopping seven times in each decade.
However, the Dolphins have fared quite poorly in recent memory. In the 2000s and 2010s, Miami played meaningful January football a combined four times, as the Dolphins failed to qualify for the playoffs 16 of 20 times across those two decades. In those 20 years, the Dolphins had seven head coaches (not counting interim head coaches) and 21 starting quarterbacks.
Miami currently has the longest playoff-win drought in the NFL. With the Detroit Lions ending their 32-year postseason-win drought last year, Miami’s 23-year drought is now the longest in the league.
Miami hasn’t won a playoff game since 2000, when they defeated the Indianapolis Colts 23-17.
The Dolphins’ early years featured significantly more postseason success. Miami made their first playoff appearance in 1970 under first-year coach Don Shula. Then, they became the first team in NFL history to play in three consecutive Super Bowls (VI, VII, and VIII), including back-to-back victories in Super Bowl VII and Super Bowl VIII.
To this day, the Dolphins are the only team in NFL history to record an undefeated season. In 1972, the Dolphins went a perfect 17-0 including the playoffs, culminating in a 14-7 win over Washington in Super Bowl VII.
Miami followed up that title with a win over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl VIII, becoming the first AFC team to win consecutive Super Bowl rings.
This title in 1973 is Miami’s most recent championship, but they did have other opportunities. Miami appeared in two more Super Bowls, both coming in the early 1980s.
They reached Super Bowl XVII in the 1982 strike-shortened season, losing to Washington 27-17. Two years later, behind a record-setting season from Marino, Miami tied the franchise record with 14 wins (14-2 record) and played in Super Bowl XIX, which they ultimately lost 38-16 to San Francisco.
In 1985 and 1992, Miami reached the AFC Championship Game but lost both times against fellow AFC East rivals (the New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills).
How Many Playoff Wins Do the Dolphins Have?
Miami is 20-23 record across 43 postseason contests, meaning they are just under .500.
Who is the only coach besides Don Shula and Jimmy Johnson to win a playoff game for the Dolphins? Dave Wannstedt, as he was the coach of that 2000 team that defeated the Colts in the 2000 AFC Wild Card round.
The Dolphins’ most recent postseason appearance came last season, but they lost to the eventual-champion Kansas City Chiefs in the Wild Card round 26-7.