So the polling to select our two starting safeties has ended and the two players that will move onto our all-time Miami Dolphins roster are-
Jake Scott– Jake led the polling by a wide margin, pulling down 46% of all the votes cast or 137 of 296 total votes. Scott began his pro football career playing in the CFL for the BC Lions in 1969. The Miami Dolphins then drafted Scott in the seventh round of the 1970 NFL Draft. Jake would spend the next six seasons in South Florida where in just his rookie season he recorded five interceptions and had a punt return for a touchdown. In year two with Miami, he recorded seven interceptions on the way to helping the Dolphins earn a spot in Super Bowl VI. While Miami lost in their first trip to the Super Bowl in 1971 they returned for the 1972 season with a chip on their shoulder that propelled them to the only undefeated season in the modern era of the NFL. In Super Bowl VII Scott cemented his place as one of the all-time great Miami Dolphins players by pulling down two interceptions, including one in the fourth quarter helping seal the Phins first Super Bowl victory. Jake was named Super Bowl MVP for that game. Not to be outdone, when the Dolphins returned to the very next Super Bowl, Super Bowl VIII, Scott recorded two fumble recoveries, which at the time was a Super Bowl record. Scott still holds a portion of the all-time recoveries record in Super Bowls with 12 others. After his time in Miami Scott also played for the Washington Football Team for the final three seasons of his career. In his nine-year NFL career, Scott recorded a total of 49 interceptions, 35 of those with the Dolphins, which to this day still makes him the all-time Dolphins leader in interceptions. In addition, he also managed to record 13 fumble recoveries during his time in the NFL. In addition to his Super Bowl MVP and being a two-time Super Bowl champion Scott was also elected to five Pro Bowls, earning his spot every season from 1971 to 1975. Jake was also voted a two-time First-team All-Pro in 1973-74. Scott earned Second-Team All-Pro honors in 1971-72 and 1975. Scott was also placed in the Miami Dolphins Honor Roll in 2010. Scott spent most of his post-football life as a bit of a recluse, choosing to shun the spotlight. Jake sadly passed away last year at the age of 75, after a fall down some steps near his home in Hawaii in which he suffered a head injury, which he later succumbed to in a hospital in Georgia.
Dick Anderson– Anderson came in second in our voting with 65 of 296 votes for 22% of the total vote. Anderson was drafted in the AFL draft in 1968 by the Miami Dolphins in the third round as the 68th overall player taken. In 1968 Anderson was named the AFL league rookie of the year. In Andersons nine AFL/NFL seasons, all nine of which he played in Miami, he recorded 34 interceptions, three of which he returned for touchdowns. In addition, he also recovered 15 fumbles, including one that was returned for a touchdown. Besides playing safety for the Phins, Anderson also returned kicks and punts as had Jake Scott. He also punted for the team on nine different occasions. In what was possibly his best overall performance in a single game, on December 3rd of 1973, Anderson became the 7th player in NFL history to pick off four balls in a single game on the way to helping the Phins defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 30 to 26. Like Scott, Anderson was also a two-time Super Bowl Champion in Super Bowls VII and VIII. Dick was elected to three consecutive Pro Bowls from 1972 to 1974. Anderson was voted a two-time First-team All-Pro in 1972-73 and Second-team All-Pro in 1974. Dick was the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1973 as well as leading the NFL in interceptions that season. He has since retiring been named to the NFL 1970’s All-Decade Team as well as the Miami Dolphins Honor Roll. Anderson also served as the president of the NFL players union, the NFLPA, for three years from 1975 to 1977 when he retired. He later went on to become a very successful businessman in South Florida and later a Florida State Senator in 1993. Anderson is one of only four players named to the NFL’s All-Decade Team for the 1970s to not have been, thus far, inducted into the Pro Football Hall Of Fame. Like so many other overlooked and well-deserving former Miami Dolphins players here’s to hoping that Anderson gets his call while he is still with us.
Before we head into nominations for the next round let’s look at where we are at this point with building our roster-
- Head Coach– Don Shula
- Quarterback– Dan Marino
- Center– Dwight Stephenson
- Cornerbacks– Sam Maddison and Patrick Surtain
- Linebackers– Zach Thomas, Nick Buoniconti, John Offerdahl and, A.J. Duhe
- Tight End– Keith Jackson
- Wide Receivers– Mark Clayton and Paul Warfield
- Safeties– Jake Scott and Dick Anderson
So now we move onto the next position, offensive tackle, so in this round please feel free to nominate up to two players as we will ultimately have to select our top two OTs all-time from the list of nominations. As in the past, I will list some top names but by no means do you have to select your nominations from this following list. Please, feel free to do your own research on anyone on this list or anyone else that played the position in their time with the Dolphins. Please also feel free to make the argument for why and who you picked in the comments below. The following list is not ranked but simply organized in alphabetical order by last names.
- Vernon Carey
- Doug Cursan
- Jeff Dellenbach (Dellenbach played 4 OL positions for Miami)
- Norm Evans
- Jon Giesler
- Jake Long
- Wayne Moore
- Richmond Webb
Please give us your nominations below for who you believe to be the best two offensive tackles to ever play for our Miami Dolphins-
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