Identified for his position within the Dolphins’ excellent 1972 season and being one in all that storied workforce’s lead ambassadors, Mercury Morris died Saturday night time. Morris’ son announced his passing Sunday morning.
Born Eugene Morris, the shifty ball-carrier performed a lead position in an NFL dynasty. He stepped in because the Dolphins’ lead halfback in a backfield that featured Corridor of Fame fullback Larry Csonka. Whereas Csonka was the engine for these Miami offenses, he and Morris shaped a deadly tandem that powered the Dolphins throughout a run-heavy NFL period.
The Dolphins ventured to a few straight Tremendous Bowls from 1971-73. Though Jim Kiick operated as Csonka’s main complement through the 1971 season, Morris — a 1969 third-round pick of West Texas A&M — stepped in as Miami’s prime HB through the 1972 slate.
Along with that 17-0 Dolphins season being among the many most celebrated in American sports activities historical past, Morris teamed with Csonka to turn into the NFL’s first 1,000-1,000 backfield. The previous landed on precisely 1,000 dashing yards in that 14-game marketing campaign, with Csonka ending with 1,117 to assist a Dolphins workforce that performed with out beginning quarterback Bob Griese for a lot of that excellent season.
After eclipsing 70 dashing yards in Miami’s two wins through the AFC playoffs, Morris led the NFL with 12 dashing touchdowns for a 1973 Dolphins workforce that went 12-2 and beat superior regular-season competitors (Oakland, Pittsburgh, Dallas) in comparison with its unbeaten predecessor.
Morris averaged a career-best 6.4 yards per carry that season and joined Csonka in serving to Miami win Tremendous Bowl VIII whereas trying simply seven passes in a one-sided win over the Vikings.
Miami’s 1974 workforce performed with out Morris for all however 5 video games, and the veteran again didn’t go well with up for the workforce’s loss to the Raiders in a divisional-round basic. Morris, who additionally returned three kickoffs for touchdowns throughout his first three NFL seasons, earned three Professional Bowl alternatives. He performed seven seasons with the Dolphins, persevering with after Csonka and Corridor of Fame broad receiver Paul Warfield left for the short-lived World Soccer League in 1975, however noticed his profession impacted by a knee damage suffered through the 1974 preseason.
Morris, who completed his profession with the Chargers in 1976, accrued 4,133 profession dashing yards in eight seasons. Amongst operating backs, Morris’ 5.1 profession yards-per-carry common trails solely Marion Motley (5.7), Jamaal Charles (5.4), Nick Chubb (5.3) and Jim Brown (5.2). Amongst RBs to play previous the 1970 merger, Morris ranks third in YPC.
Sentenced to twenty years in jail for cocaine trafficking in 1982, Morris served three-and-a-half years after the Florida Supreme Courtroom overturned his conviction. The Pittsburgh native would repeatedly tout the Dolphins’ excellent season, which yearly entails the surviving workforce members toasting after the NFL’s last unbeaten goes down.
