The 2004 Miami Dolphins season was the team's 39th overall, and 35th as a member of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the majo ...

. The Dolphins were unable to improve upon their previous season's output of 10–6, instead only going 4–12 after starting the season 0–6. The team was adversely affected by the premature retirement of their star running back,

Ricky Williams Errick Miron (born Errick Lynne Williams Jr.; May 21, 1977) is an American former football running back who played 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and one season in the Canadian Football League (CFL). After playing baseball ...

, and the trade of holdout defensive end

Adewale Ogunleye Adewale Ogunleye (; born August 9, 1977) is a former American football defensive end who played eleven seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent in 2000 and also played for t ...

for wide receiver

Marty Booker Marty Montez Booker (born July 31, 1976) is a former American football wide receiver who played for eleven seasons in the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for Louisiana-Monroe, he was drafted by the Chicago Bears ...

, as well as career ending injuries to fullback Rob Konrad and defensive tackle

Tim Bowens Timothy L. Bowens (born February 7, 1973) is an athlete and former American football defensive tackle who played 11 seasons for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Mississi ...

. With this season record below .500 the team would have their first losing season since 1988. To make matters worse, two of their games were postponed due to

Hurricane Ivan Hurricane Ivan was a large, long-lived, Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread damage in the Caribbean and United States. The cyclone was the ninth named storm, the sixth hurricane and the fourth major hurricane of the active 2004 Atlant ...

and

Hurricane Jeanne Hurricane Jeanne was a Saffir–Simpson scale, Category 3 hurricane that struck the Caribbean and the Eastern United States in September 2004. It was the deadliest hurricane in the Atlantic basin since Hurricane Mitch, Mitch in 1998 Atlantic hur ...

. Despite the disappointing season, the Dolphins, at 2–11 were able to upset the defending and eventual Super Bowl champion 12–1

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

, a memorable game of the Dolphins-Patriots rivalry known as "The Night That Courage Wore Orange", and handed the Patriots their second loss of the season. During Week 6, their match with the Buffalo Bills is the only time in the NFL since

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...

that the last two winless teams have met each other.

Staff

Roster

Schedule

"The Night That Courage Wore Orange"

On December 20, the 2–11 Dolphins upset the 12–1 defending and eventual Super Bowl champion Patriots on ''

Monday Night Football ''ESPN Monday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''MNF'' and also known as ''ESPN Monday Night Football on ABC'' for simulcasts) is an American live television broadcast of weekly National Football League (NFL) games currently airing on ESPN, AB ...

'' by a score of 29–28. Late in the game,

A. J. Feeley Adam Joshua Feeley (born May 16, 1977) is a former American football quarterback. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fifth round of the 2001 NFL Draft, and went on to play for the Miami Dolphins, San Diego Chargers, Carolina Pan ...

threw a game-winning touchdown to

Derrius Thompson Derrius Damon Thompson (born July 5, 1977) is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins and the Miami Dolphins. He played college football at Baylor University Baylor University is ...

on 4th down and 10.

Bleacher Report Bleacher Report (often abbreviated as B/R) is a website that focuses on sport and sports culture. Its headquarters are in San Francisco, with offices in New York City and London. Bleacher Report was acquired by Turner Broadcasting System in Aug ...

writer Thomas Galicia nicknamed the game "The Night That Courage Wore Orange".

Images

File:November 1 2004 MNF Jets Dolphins NFL 1.jpg, Miami at the Jets in the 2004 season, week 8 File:November 1 2004 MNF Jets Dolphins NFL 2.jpg, Dolphins defense is called into action, week 8

Standings

References

Miami Dolphins seasons

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

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