New ESPN E60 “The Perfect Machine” Examines the ’72 Miami Dolphins

In its newest episode, ESPN E60 examines what made that team so good and how the undefeated season unfolded. The Perfect Machine debuts on Sunday, February 5, at noon ET on ABC, leading up to ABC’s telecasts of Postseason NFL Countdown and the 2023 Pro Bowl Games. It will re-air on ESPN2 at 11 p.m.

  • Fifty years ago, history was made when the Miami Dolphins completed a perfect 17-0 season by winning Super Bowl VII in Los Angeles.
  • Despite several teams coming close, the perfect record has stood the test of time and the 1972 Dolphins remain the only team to complete an undefeated season in NFL history.
  • The Perfect Machine will be available for streaming on ESPN+ immediately after the first airing and will re-air multiple more times across ESPN television platforms.
  • Many words are thrown around when talking about the ’72 Dolphins. “Undefeated” is naturally one of the most common. But to the players and coaches who were a part of that squad, there is a word that carries with it a deeper meaning, takes it one step further, and rings as true as it ever has even 50 years later: Perfect.
  • In more than six months of filming, E60’s Jeremy Schaap interviewed 16 living members of the ’72 Dolphins, as well as opponents and members of the media who covered the team.
  • The list includes Pro Football Hall of Famers like:
    • Paul Warfield
    • Larry Csonka
    • Larry Little
    • Bob Griese
    • Joe Namath
  • On the 50th anniversary of the Dolphins’ Super Bowl VII victory, they reflect on how perfection happened, and how the coach, Don Shula, was able to take a team that was the worst in the league was just a few years earlier and turn it into, as Csonka says, “The Perfect Machine.”
  • Other members of the ’72 Dolphins interviewed for the program include:
    • Manny Fernandez
    • Mercury Morris
    • Bob Heinz
    • Charlie Babb
    • Doug Crusan
    • Howard Kindig
    • Jim Del Gaizo
    • Larry Ball
    • Larry Seiple
    • Vern Den Herder
    • Marv Fleming
    • Dick Anderson
  • Via archival video, viewers hear from Shula as well as other deceased members of the team including:
    • Bob Kuechenberg
    • Garo Yepremian
    • Jim Mandich
    • Nick Buoniconti
    • Jim Kiick
    • Earl Morrall
    • Bob Matheson
    • Norm Evans
  • Some of the others interviewed include:
    • Dave Shula – oldest son of the late Don Shula
    • George Solomon – former Miami Dolphins beat reporter
    • Tony Segreto – TV reporter in Miami in 1972
    • Jane Chastain – TV reporter in Miami in 1972
    • Paul Maguire – former TV analyst and 1960’s pro football player
  • The Perfect Machine was produced and directed by Dan Lindberg.