Dolphins History Lesson: Memorable Trades
There were several personnel moves and decisions that paved the way for the Miami Dolphins to put together their great run of the 1970s, and one of the biggest one occurred July 2, 1969.
That was the day the Dolphins and San Diego Chargers swapped little-known players, who just so happened to have been high school teammates at Booker T. Washington in Miami.
The two players were Mack Lamb and Larry Little. One never played another down of professional football after the trade, the other went to the Hall of Fame.
Larry Little, of course, is the Hall of Famer, as he became a five-time All-Pro with the Dolphins and one of the key ingredients in a running game that led to three consecutive Super Bowl appearances and back-to-back Super Bowl titles.
If that wasn't the greatest trade in Dolphins history, it certainly has to rank right up there.
On the anniversary of that memorable trade, we look back at other memorable Dolphins trades.
• 1969: Dolphins acquire LB Nick Buoniconti from the Boston Patriots for LB John Bramlett and QB Kim Hammond and a 5th-round draft pick
Buoniconti was a five-time AFL All-Star when the Dolphins acquired him, and he remained just as effective for them as the leader of the No-Name Defense. Like Little, Buoniconti eventually made his way to the Hall of Fame, the only member of those 1970s defense to earn that honor.
• 1970: Dolphins acquire WR Paul Warfield from Cleveland for a first-round pick
While the Dolphins pounded opponents with their running game, it was Warfield who would provide the big plays with his speed outside. He played eight of his 13 NFL seasons with the Browns, but his five seasons in Miami were memorable and helped him get elected to the Hall of Fame. In those five seasons for the Dolphins, he was a two-time All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowl selection.
• 1978: Dolphins acquire RB Delvin Williams from San Francisco for WR Freddie Solomon, S Vern Roberson, and 1st- and 5th-round picks
The Dolphins obviously paid a big price for Williams, but he paid immediate dividends by rushing for a team-record 1,258 yards in his very first year in Miami. Unfortunately for Miami, Williams didn't top 703 rushing yards in either of his final two seasons with the Dolphins.
• 1985: Dolphins acquire LB Hugh Green from Tampa Bay for 1st- and 2nd-round picks in the 1986 draft
The Dolphins paid a heavy price for Green, who had been an All-American at Pitt as a teammate of Dan Marino and had been a two-time Pro Bowl selection with the Bucs, and he ended up starting 66 games in seven seasons for Miami. But he never was a true impact player for the Dolphins.
• 1993: Dolphins acquire WR Irving Fryar from New England for a 1993 2nd-round pick and a 1994 3rd-round pick
This is one of those rare intradivisional trades, and it worked out great for the Dolphins because Fryar was the team's best receiver (and a two-time Pro Bowl selection) for all three of his seasons in Miami.
• 1995: Dolphins acquire DE Trace Armstrong from Chicago for 2nd- and 3rd-round picks
The Dolphins paid the same kind of price for Armstrong as they did for Fryar and it also worked out great because Armstrong averaged almost 10 sacks in his six seasons in Miami, topped by his 16.5 in 2000 when he earned a Pro Bowl selection.
• 2002: Dolphins acquire RB Ricky Williams and a 4th-round pick from New Orleans for 2002 and 2003 1st-round picks and a 4th-round pick
Like Delvin Williams, Ricky was a difference-maker immediately. His first season in Miami, in fact, is among the very best by a Dolphins player as he led the NFL with a franchise-record 1,853 yards. Yes, Williams' time in Miami was a roller-coaster ride, what with the suspensions and all, but the fact remains he's among the most productive players in franchise history.
2006: Dolphins acquire QB Daunte Culpepper from Minnesota for a 2nd-round pick
Yes, we have to mention this trade because it was memorable, although not for good reasons. The decision to trade for Culpepper instead of signing Drew Brees as a free agent when both had medical questions is one that has haunted the Dolphins for more than a decade.
2008: Dolphins acquire TE Anthony Fasano and LB Akin Ayodele from Dallas for a 4th-round pick
There were a lot of factors involved in the Dolphins' run to the AFC East title in 2008, and one of them was this little-discussed gem of a trade with the Cowboys. Fasano and Ayodele had become expendable in Dallas, but Bill Parcells and Tony Sparano knew what they could do and they both were valuable starters for the Dolphins' 11-5 team. Fasano, for one, led the team in touchdown catches that season.
2010: Dolphins acquire WR Brandon Marshall from Denver for two 2nd-round picks
From a production standpoint, this was a great trade for Marshall because this was a receiver with immense talent. And he certainly produced in Miami, topping 80 catches and 1,000 yards in each of his two seasons. But the Dolphins traded him away (for two third-round picks) after Joe Philbin took over as head coach in 2012. The Dolphins, it turned out, weren't the only team who gave up on Marshall despite his obvious talent — he played for six teams during his 13-year NFL career, an unusually large number for a receiver with 970 career catches and more than 12,000 receiving yards.
2016: Dolphins acquire LB Kiko Alonso, CB Byron Maxwell and the 13th overall selection in the 2016 NFL draft from Philadelphia for the 8th overall selection
The Eagles made that trade, more than anything, to help their salary-cap situation and the deal didn't provide a great long-term return for the Dolphins. But Alonso and Maxwell both were starters on the 2016 Dolphins team that made the playoffs, and Alonso's game-winning pick-six at San Diego was among the biggest plays of the season.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is not meant to be an all-encompassing list. The trades were listed in chronological order, but we encourage our readers to rank their top three in the comments section.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alain Poupart has covered the Miami Dolphins on a full-time basis since 1989. You can follow him on Twitter @apoupartFins.
