December 30th, 2000. I remember that day well.
The Miami Dolphins hosted the Indianapolis Colts in a Wild Card matchup in the NFL Playoffs. Quarterback Jay Fiedler passed for just 185 yards — still only 9 yards behind a young Peyton Manning’s 194 yards passing. Wide receiver O.J. McDuffie led Miami with 4 receptions for 57 yards. However, on offense, it was the Lamar Smith show. Smith, the former third round selection of the Seattle Seahawks in the 1994 NFL Draft, had just come off of his first 1,000 yard rushing season, totaling 1,193 yards on 309 carries during his debut season with the Dolphins. In that playoff contest against the Colts, Smith notched a whopping 40 carries for 209 rushing yards and two touchdowns — the second of which gave Miami the glorious game-winning score in overtime.
And just like that, as the team finished celebrating, and the fans filtered out of Pro Player Stadium — as the field lights were switched off one-by-one — so too would dim the sparkle in the eyes of Miami fans, as unbeknownst to them, the Dolphins would begin the fruitless and arduous journey of 25 years (and counting) without tasting the sweet nectar of playoff victory once more.
Today marks the 25th anniversary of the last time the Miami Dolphins were victorious in the NFL postseason. During that stretch of time, every other NFL franchise has claimed at least one win in the playoffs, with the Detroit Lions breaking their own winless drought in 2023.
Since the 2000 season, the Dolphins have made it to the playoffs only five times, losing each game. The Dolphins’ latest playoff failure came in frigid Kansas City following the 2023 season, when in the coldest game in franchise history, the team fell to the Chiefs by a score of 26-7.
A lot can change in a quarter-century. Here is a brief list of some monumental events that have occurred in society since the last time the Dolphins won a playoff game:
- September 11, 2001 – 9/11 Attacks
- 2004 – Launch of Facebook
- 2007 – Introduction of the iPhone
- 2008 – Global Financial Crisis
- 2009 – Death of Michael Jackson
- 2012 – Curiosity Rover lands on Mars
- 2016 – Cleveland Cavaliers come back from 3-1 deficit to Win the NBA Finals
- 2016 & 2024 – Donald Trump elected President… twice
- 2020 – COVID-19 declared a global pandemic
- 2023 & 2024 – Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour becomes highest grossing concert tour of all time
Unfortunately for Dolphins fans, the team will not be making the postseason this season, so it will be (at least) another long year before Miami can once again claim victory in the playoffs. Will the squad have what it takes to defy the odds and end the dubious distinction of being the NFL team with the longest playoff win drought in 2026? We will all have to wait and see, but as we ponder all that has gone wrong for the Dolphins in the last 25 seasons, it’s fair to wonder when things will start going right for our beloved South Florida franchise.
Happy anniversary, Dolfans — and remember, “It can’t rain all the time.”
