Gridiron America Radio

It was a dilemma no other NFL team had ever faced: How do you improve on perfection? The 1972 Miami Dolphins became the first team in pro football history to finish a season unbeaten, going 17-0 with a Super Bowl title. That kind of success could make anyone complacent. But head coach Don Shula was not going to allow it. He believed his Dolphins could perform even better. Still, the 1973 Dolphins did not match the same level of success as the season prior. They exceeded it, according to Shula. In Super Bowl VIII, Miami pummeled the Minnesota Vikings for its second-straight world championship. "I think that we're a better football team than we were a year ago at this time," said Shula afterward. "I think us going back-to-back in Super Bowls is more meaningful."

In this episode Greg sits down for a conversation with Ottawa sports historian Howie Mooney, co-author of Third & Long: The Proud History of Football in Ottawa, co-host of The Sports Lunatics podcast, and feature writer with the Fired Up Network, to talk not just Rough Rider, Renegade, and RedBlack history, but also the sports landscape in Canada. Howie tells a number of stories and the two also talk about the world of podcasting. Lastly, the delve in and geek out with a talk about simulation sports, as both Greg and Howie are both avid board and computer gamers.

The team wasn't especially big, quick, or flashy. It rarely blew away opponents. Its best player was a fullback, its defense was anonymous, and it played without its Pro Bowl quarterback for most of the year. Still, the 1972 Miami Dolphins are the only team to finish a season undefeated -- 17-0, to be exact -- in National Football League history. Fresh off a Super Bowl loss the season prior, Miami played like a team determined to win a championship, racking up 14 straight regular season wins. The Dolphins offense relied heavily on their ground game, running the ball 613 times and boasting the first pair of 1,000-yard runners in Larry Csonka and Mercury Morris. On the other side of the ball, the "No Name Defense" was no less dominant, giving up the fewest points in the league. Then, in the postseason, Miami enjoyed the return of quarterback Bob Griese, who was sidelined most of the season due to leg and ankle injuries. In Super Bowl VII, Griese threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Howard Twilley for the game's first score before a few scares by George Allen's Redskins threatened the Dolphins' bid for an unbeaten year.

In the episode Scott and Greg sit down with noted professional football historian Michael MacCambridge, whose award-winning book "America’s Game: The Epic Story of How Pro Football Captured A Nation" is widely considered the definitive modern history of pro football in America.  We discuss his current book, which is devoted to professional football in England, entitled "Red Letters: Two Fervent Liverpool FC Supporters Correspond through the Epic Season That Wouldn’t End," his thoughts on the state of professional football and fandom, as well as his upcoming future book about professional sports in the America of the 1970s.

Halfway through the 1971 season, the Dallas Cowboys had every reason to be worried. A quarterback controversy brewed between Craig Morton and Roger Staubach. A contract dispute had brought star running back Duane Thomas to a vow of silence. Making matters worse was a 38-0 beating by the St. Louis Cardinals. It seemed certain that the team that "couldn't win the big one" would fall short of a title yet again. With a 4-3 record after seven weeks, head coach Tom Landry named Staubach the team's starter. Dallas wouldn't lose another game that season. With Staubach firmly at the controls, the Cowboys barreled through the rest of the regular season and the playoffs enroute to Super Bowl VI. There, against the Miami Dolphins, Dallas changed its runner-up identity forever with a 24-3 victory. 

By any other standard, it was a season of triumph. Eleven regular season wins, two more in the playoffs, and then the crowning glory of victory in Super Bowl V. But for the 1970 Baltimore Colts, the victory remained in the shadow of a devastating defeat - their crushing upset loss to the Jets two years earlier in Super Bowl III. America's Game relives the Colts bittersweet season from their regular-season rematch against the Jets, through the first year of a merged NFL, to the comedy of errors that was Super Bowl V. As told by men who lived it - Bubba Smith, Bill Curry, and Mike Curtis - the story of the 1970 Baltimore Colts offers a rare glimpse into the proud heart of a champion. For some, it was a moment of sweet redemption. For others, it was a reminder of what could have been.

They entered Super Bowl IV as 13-point underdogs. But the 1969 Kansas City Chiefs' decisive victory over the Minnesota Vikings put to rest any questions as to whether the fledgling American Football League could compete against the established NFL. It also validated the careers of five future Hall of Fame players and their flamboyant head coach Hank Stram. To become world champions, Kansas City had to overcome more than its share of adversity. Quarterback Len Dawson missed nearly half the season with a knee injury, then was forced to deal with family tragedy and a shocking news story.

Prior to the 1968 season, the AFL was considered a minor league compared to the more established NFL. The league had already lost Super Bowls I and II. So the success of the New York Jets, and their quarterback, Joe Namath, could not have come at a better moment. Namath, who had a quick release and charisma to burn, piloted a Jets offense that set a franchise record by scoring 419 points that season. Still, his high-flying attack played into the perception that the AFL had finesse teams. But the Jets also led the league in defense, and possessed a punishing ground game that produced 22 touchdowns. This was a veteran group that bowed to no one - not even the powerful Baltimore Colts of the NFL. The Colts were heavily favored over the Jets entering Super Bowl III, which made Namath's now famous, guarantee of victory before the game, all the more surprising. "Broadway Joe" then orchestrated one of the greatest upsets in pro football history, winning a world title for New York ... and the AFL at large.

The Green Bay Packers have long been one of the most celebrated franchises in football history, and this documentary focuses on one of the team's greatest seasons. The 1967-1968 squad had one of the most memorable post-seasons in NFL history including the epic "Ice Bowl" victory over the Dallas Cowboys. Players from that team offer their memories and insights into that campaign.

This episode chronicles the first team to win a Super Bowl, the 1966 Green Bay Packers, led by legendary head coach Vince Lombardi and quarterback Bart Starr. The Green Bay Packers were rated as the 6th greatest Super Bowl winning team by a Blue Ribbon panel of experts.

The team credo of the 1969 Minnesota Vikings was "40 for 60." In extreme cold with no heaters, in wins, in losses, all 40 members of the team gave it their all for all 60 minutes of the game. The 1969 Vikings, known for their "Purple People Eaters" defensive line and 12 consecutive victories  set a record for consecutive wins and defeated the Cleveland Browns in the NFL championship game to reach Super Bowl IV before losing to the Kansas City Chiefs. Their story is told by Hall of Fame head coach Bud Grant, star quarterback Joe Kapp, and defensive end Jim Marshall, who played for 20 seasons and never missed a game.

Larry Csonka, the late Jim Kiick, and Mercury Morris are still remembered for achieving something that no other NFL team ever has: Perfection. These three running backs were a part of what is still seen in history as the best football team of all time: the 1972 Miami Dolphins. “We did one thing: we hit perfection. When you become a definition, not just a number, then you are in a special place.” – Larry Csonka In this documentary, Kiick and Morris traveled to Alaska where they are reunited with Csonka. The three teammates reminisce about their past while fishing, highlighting the incredible bond that was forged between them.

The documentary primarily focuses on two ex-players: Jim Otto and Roger Stillwell. Otto was a star center for the Oakland Raiders during the  1960s and 1970s. On the surface, his story seems to represent all that  is right about pro football; after a long career he was elected to the  NFL’s Hall of Fame and then enjoyed great business success as a  restaurant franchise owner. Viewers learn, however, that Otto’s health is terrible, though he was just 46 at the time of filming. The most-moving story in Disposable Heroes belongs to Roger  Stillwell, a 6-foot-6 defensive lineman from Stanford University, who achieved a brief moment in the sun with the Chicago Bears. Stillwell’s career ended in an instant during a 1977 game against the Minnesota  Vikings

Aaron Rodgers drops in the draft while waiting in the Green Room, while former New York Giants general manager Ernie Accorsi enjoys his best draft ever. Features interviews with Aaron Rodgers, Justin Tuck, Mike McCarthy, Bill Polian, Cadillac Williams, Ronnie Brown and more.

When number one overall pick Eli Manning refuses to play for the San Diego Chargers, it triggers the biggest showdown between an organization and player in two decades and alters the fortunes of quarterbacks Philip Rivers and Ben Roethlisberger. Additionally, the University of Miami (FL) sets an NFL record for most first-round selections with six. Features interviews with Ben Roethlisberger, Philip Rivers, Mike Mayock, Leigh Steinberg, Peter King, Mel Kiper, Jr. and more.