1990 Miami Dolphins season
25th season in franchise history; first playoff berth in 5 years
The 1990 Miami Dolphins season was the team's twenty-first season in the National Football League and twenty-fifth overall. After four seasons out of the playoffs with a combined record of 30 wins and 33 losses, the Dolphins returned to postseason play for the first time since 1985 with twelve wins and four losses. They defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 17–16 in the Wild Card Game, before being knocked out of contention by the Buffalo Bills, 44–34 in the Divisional Playoff Game.
1990 marked the first time since their record 1972 perfect season that the Dolphins played the New York Giants, and merely the second in team history. The reason for this is that before the admission of the Texans in 2002, NFL scheduling formulas for games outside a team's division were much more influenced by table position during the previous season. Also, the scheduled game between the Giants and Dolphins in 1987 was cancelled due to a players' strike.
As of 2025, this was also the last time the Dolphins finished with at least twelve wins in the regular season.
Offseason
NFL draft
Undrafted free agents
Personnel
Staff
Roster
Regular season
Schedule
Standings
Player stats
Passing
Receiving
Defense
Playoffs
AFC wild card game
With 2:28 left in the game, the Dolphins capped an 85-yard drive with quarterback Dan Marino's winning 12-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mark Clayton.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “1990 Miami Dolphins season” is 25th season in franchise history; first playoff berth in 5 years. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Miami, Dolphins and season, not as a finished interpretation.
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