The 1990 Miami Dolphins season was the team's twenty-first season in the National Football League and twenty-fifth overall. After four seasons out of the playoffs with a combined record of 30 wins and 33 losses, the Dolphins returned to postseason play for the first time since 1985 with twelve wins and four losses. They defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 17–16 in the Wild Card Game, before being knocked out of contention by the Buffalo Bills, 44–34 in the Divisional Playoff Game.
| 1990 Miami Dolphins season | |
|---|---|
| General manager | Eddie Jones |
| Head coach | Don Shula |
| Home field | Joe Robbie Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 12–4 |
| Division place | 2nd AFC East |
| Playoff finish | Won Wild Card Playoffs (vs. Chiefs) 17–16 Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Bills) 34–44 |
| Pro Bowlers | 3 |
1990 marked the first time since their record 1972 perfect season that the Dolphins played the New York Giants, and merely the second in team history.[1] The reason for this is that before the admission of the Texans in 2002, NFL scheduling formulas for games outside a team's division were much more influenced by table position during the previous season. Also, the scheduled game between the Giants and Dolphins in 1987 was cancelled due to a players' strike. [2]
As of 2023, this was also the last time the Dolphins finished with at least twelve wins in the regular season.
Offseason
| = Pro Bowler [3] |
NFL Draft
| Pick # | NFL team | Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | Miami Dolphins | Richmond Webb | Tackle | Texas A&M |
| 40 | Miami Dolphins | Keith Sims | Guard | Iowa State |
| 67 | Miami Dolphins | Alfred Oglesby | Nose Tackle | Houston |
| 94 | Miami Dolphins | Scott Mitchell | Quarterback | Utah |
Personnel
Staff
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
Roster
Regular season
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 9 | at New England Patriots | W 27–24 | 1–0 | Foxboro Stadium | 45,305 | |
| 2 | September 16 | Buffalo Bills | W 30–7 | 2–0 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 68,142 | |
| 3 | September 23 | at New York Giants | L 3–20 | 2–1 | Giants Stadium | 76,483 | |
| 4 | September 30 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | W 28–6 | 3–1 | Three Rivers Stadium | 54,691 | |
| 5 | October 7 | New York Jets | W 20–16 | 4–1 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 69,678 | |
| 6 | Bye | ||||||
| 7 | October 18 | New England Patriots | W 17–10 | 5–1 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 62,630 | |
| 8 | October 28 | at Indianapolis Colts | W 27–7 | 6–1 | Hoosier Dome | 59,213 | |
| 9 | November 4 | Phoenix Cardinals | W 23–3 | 7–1 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 54,294 | |
| 10 | November 11 | at New York Jets | W 17–3 | 8–1 | Giants Stadium | 68,362 | |
| 11 | November 19 | Los Angeles Raiders | L 10–13 | 8–2 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 70,553 | |
| 12 | November 25 | at Cleveland Browns | W 30–13 | 9–2 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 70,225 | |
| 13 | December 2 | at Washington Redskins | L 20–42 | 9–3 | RFK Stadium | 53,599 | |
| 14 | December 9 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 23–20 (OT) | 10–3 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 67,034 | |
| 15 | December 16 | Seattle Seahawks | W 24–17 | 11–3 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 57,851 | |
| 16 | December 23 | at Buffalo Bills | L 14–24 | 11–4 | Rich Stadium | 80,235 | |
| 17 | December 30 | Indianapolis Colts | W 23–17 | 12–4 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 59,547 | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | |||||||
Standings
| AFC East | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| (1) Buffalo Bills | 13 | 3 | 0 | .813 | 7–1 | 10–2 | 428 | 263 | L1 |
| (4) Miami Dolphins | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 7–1 | 10–2 | 336 | 242 | W1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 3–5 | 5–7 | 281 | 353 | L1 |
| New York Jets | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 2–6 | 4–10 | 295 | 345 | W2 |
| New England Patriots | 1 | 15 | 0 | .063 | 1–7 | 1–11 | 181 | 446 | L14 |
Player stats
Passing
| Player | Att | Comp | Yds | Touchdowns | INT | Rating |
| Dan Marino | 531 | 306 | 3563 | 21 | 11 | 82.6 |
Receiving
| Player | Receptions | Yards | Average | Long | Touchdowns |
| Mark Clayton | 32 | 406 | 12.7 | 43 | 3 |
Defense
| Player | Tackles | Sacks | Fumble Recoveries |
| Jeff Cross | 60 | 11.5 | 2 |
Playoffs
AFC wild card game
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | 3 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 16 |
| Dolphins | 0 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 17 |
at Joe Robbie Stadium, Miami, Florida
- Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST
- Game weather: 75 °F (24 °C), cloudy
- Game attendance: 67,276
- Referee: Pat Haggerty
- TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, and Dan Dierdorf
With 2:28 left in the game, the Dolphins capped an 85-yard drive with quarterback Dan Marino's winning 12-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mark Clayton.
AFC Divisional Playoff
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dolphins | 3 | 14 | 3 | 14 | 34 |
| Bills | 13 | 14 | 3 | 14 | 44 |
at Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
- Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST
- Game weather: 31 °F (−1 °C), rain and snow
- Game attendance: 77,087
- Referee: Bob McElwee
- TV announcers (NBC): Marv Albert and Paul Maguire
Awards and honors
- Jeff Cross, AFC Pro Bowl selection
Milestones
- Dan Marino, 7th Consecutive 3,000 Yard Passing Season