The ’72 Dolphins 50th anniversary celebration: Five questions with backup QB Jim Del Gaizo
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Dolphins’ Perfect Season, the Miami Herald is running weekly conversations with members of the 1972 team that went 17-0.
Five questions with Jim Del Gaizo, who entered and ended the ‘72 season as the No. 3 quarterback but was No. 2 — Earl Morrall’s backup — after starter Bob Griese was sidelined for nine weeks with an ankle injury:
▪ After Griese went down with his injury in Week 5 against the Chargers, what was it like being one heartbeat away from starting for the NFL’s only undefeated team?
“I remember thinking this is going to be an opportunity. I got an adrenaline rush. It wasn’t like I was happy that Bob was injured, but I was happy I had my chance. It was quite a rush.
“Griese came back and finished the year; I would have loved to have a chance [to start games]. Bob didn’t take a lot of big hits. He was good at avoiding hits.”
(Del Gaizo appeared in four games and completed 5 of 9 passes for 161 yards, two touchdowns, one interception and a 100.5 passer rating. Those were his only appearances for the Dolphins before moving onto Green Bay.)
▪ What did you appreciate and respect about Griese?
“I liked the way he prepared for a game. He was a consummate pro. He didn’t have a lot of physical skills as a passer. He was obviously more than a mediocre quarterback; he’s in the Hall of Fame.
“Being in the quarterback room meetings with Bob — and coach Shula coached the quarterbacks — Bob wasn’t going to ever get caught off guard.”
▪ What did you appreciate about Morrall, who started nine wins (including two playoff games) filling in for Griese and was named NFL Comeback Player of the Year that season with 11 TDs and 7 interceptions?
“I wasn’t a big fan of Earl because when he showed up on the scene it kept me relegated to being third. It [Morrall being on the team] wasn’t because Earl was good quarterback. It was because he was a holder, not because he was a good quarterback.
“He was an unflappable old guy. As a passer, I don’t even think I would call him mediocre. That [‘72] team had so much talent and so many skilled players. Larry Csonka was the heart and soul of that team. And we had a tremendous collection of defensive athletes and Bill Arnsparger did a hell of a job coaching them.”
▪ Were you guys treated like celebrities in South Florida that season?
“Miami was a one-horse town: there was the Dolphins and nothing else. [Tight end] Marv Fleming got five, six, seven of us driving free Cadillacs from an auto dealer. We had free caddies. We went to the the Rhodes Brothers club and partied there and never paid for anything.
“I went up north after the season and came back and the Cadillac was gone. I thought it was stolen. But the dealership just took it back” because the season was over.
▪ You mentioned what a great job Shula did coaching the quarterbacks. What made him good at that particular thing?
“Besides his charisma, just his understanding of the game and the fact he was so into theories and down and distance and preparation and what to do in certain circumstances.
“He said, ‘Del Gaizo, I know what you can do on third-and-20. I need to see what you can do on third-and-4.’
“When I went to Green Bay, they traded two picks to get me, but they didn’t have a [good] coaching staff. I knew I was in trouble and I called my wife and said, ‘I think I’m in a lot of trouble. I didn’t have Don Shula there [to help me]. I got Don Shula in my first crack out of the box in the NFL; how many guys get that lucky?
“I had Monte Clark, Howard Schnellenberger and Don Shula for the whole year [in 1972]. The [expletive] I learned as a 24, 25 year old!
“When I went to Green Bay and the Giants, there wasn’t one coach on either staff who knew as much football as I knew” because of what Del Gaizo learned from Shula, Clark and Schnellenberger in one season.
Del Gaizo ended up starting three games for the Packers in that 1973 season, throwing two touchdowns and six interceptions. He started only three other NFL games, for the Giants in 1974 and threw three picks. He closed his career with a 37.3 passer rating.
This story was originally published October 12, 2022 at 8:00 AM.
