Breaking Down a Bittersweet Anniversary

The Miami Dolphins had their last playoff win 25 years ago today

Miami Dolphins quarterback Jay Fiedler (9) in action against the Oakland Raiders at Pro Player Stadium. | Lou Capozzola-Imagn Images

Tuesday marked a significant annivesary for the Miami Dolphins, though it's one that come with a pretty bad negative vibe as well.

Twenty-five years ago on this day, December 30, 2000 to be precise, the Dolphins defeated the Indianapolis Colts at what was then known as Pro Player Stadium in a thrilling 23-17 overtime affair.

The Dolphins secured the victory when Lamar Smith capped his remarkable 209-yard rushing performance with a 17-yard touchdown, but not before the Colts missed a 49-yard field goal attempt earlier in overtime and also went ultra-conservative by kneeling with the ball at their 20 and three timeouts left at the end of regulation despite having Peyton Manning at quarterback.

In one of the most thrilling games in franchise history, the Dolphins tied the score with 34 seconds left in the fourth quarter with a 9-yard touchdown pass from Jay Fiedler to tight end Jed Weaver on third-and-goal.

THE LONG DROUGHT

Unfortunately for the Dolphins, what makes the date easier to remember is the fact that playoff victory on December 30, 2000 is the last one the franchise has been able to enjoy.

The Dolphins own the dubious distinction of having the longest active playoff victory drought in the NFL, a streak that officially extended to 25 years this season with their Week 15 Monday night loss against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The second-longest drought belongs to the Las Vegas Raiders, who haven't won a playoff game since they went to the Super Bowl in the 2002 season. The next-longest droughts date back to 2010, for the Chicago Bears and New York Jets.

Since that 2000 game, the Dolphins have made the playoffs only five times in 25 seasons and were one-and-done in 2001 (losing against the Baltimore Ravens), 2008 (Baltimore), 2016 (Pittsburgh Steelers), 2022 (Buffalo Bills) and 2023 (Kansas City Chiefs).

WHY THE LONG DROUGHT?

This could be — and should be — a long discussion perhaps best suited on the day other than the annversary.

But since we're already here, let's dive into it a little bit.

For a team to not be able to win a single playoff game in 25 seasons obviously requires multiple reasons, and those always need to start at the top, whether it be ownership, GMs, head coaches or quarterbacks.

The two owners during the playoff drought have been the late Wayne Huizenga and Stephen Ross since 2009.

Huizenga was the owner when the Dolphins won that 2000 playoff game, so he had that on his resume, but Ross' 17 seasons as owners have included only three playoff appearances without that elusive win.

In terms of head coaches, the Dolphins have gone through eight coaches in those 25 seasons without a playoff win — Dave Wannstedt, Nick Saban, Cam Cameron, Tony Sparano, Joe Philbin, Adam Gase, Brian Flores and Mike McDaniel. Quick math tells you that's an average of a little more than three years per coach.

That's also not a recipe for success.

The longest a Dolphins coach has been on the job during the drought is four-plus seasons for Wannstedt, though his stint started with that one playoff win in 2000 that was followed by three winning seasons (but no playoff win) before he was dismissed after nine games in 2004.

That kind of revolving door isn't necessarily conductive to great team success, though it also could be viewed as a symptom rather than the cause.

And then we can contrast what Miami has done compared to, say, the Steelers with Mike Tomlin (in his 19th season), the Ravens with John Harbaugh (18th season), Chiefs with Andy Reid (13th season) and others.

Mike McDaniel currently is in his fourth season as Dolphins head coach, tied for 12th-longest tenure among NFL head coaches, and the biggest question around the organization right now is whether he'll be back in 2026.

The playoff victory drought also can be attributed in part to the lack of an elite quarterback since Dan Marino retired following the 1999 season, though the Dolphins were able to defeat the Colts on that day 25 years ago with Fiedler, who had some moment during his NFL career but never was considered elite.

The Dolphins, quite frankly, have had good players over those past 25 seasons but there's always been something lacking, and this is where the personnel decisions can be questions, which brings the GMs into the spotlight.

It was Chris Grier who occupied that role the longest during the drought, and the Dolphins moved on from him in late October after a 2-7 start during his 10th season on the job.

The Dolphins could be in rebuilding mode to some degree next season, including the quarterback position where the team very well might move on from Tua Tagovailoa.

The big question then becomes exactly when the Dolphins will be in position to end their playoff win drought.

When they finally do, the date December 30, 2000 maybe won't carry that negative vibe with it any longer.