My Miami Dolphins Won!

I know some people get all pissy when you say "we", "us", "our" or "my" when referring to a sports team. They feel that since you don't play for the team that you're not really part of it. Well, guess what? When you suffer through a season like this one, and you stay onboard no matter how shitty it gets then you deserve to consider yourself as part of the team. At least the players get paid for what they do. Fans give 100% every game, and their only compensation comes in the form of wins. So today, the Miami Dolphins belong to everyone that has cheered them on, even when it looked like they might not win a game.

I remember thinking yesterday before the early games started that this could be the first win of the season. Sure, I had thought that quite a few times this year, but after seeing how bad the Ravens played against Indy I really felt it could happen. Then I checked the TV schedule, and saw that the game wasn't going to be on. Instead I got the Jaguars/Steelers game, which turned out to be good, but it wasn't my Dolphins. I couldn't even find it on Sopcast, and had to resort to listening to it on the radio. Straight old school style.

As time wound down, and Miami set up for the late, apparent game winning field goal I tried to not get too excited. I had been down this road before, and it hadn't turned out good all season. Wouldn't you know, after making it Jay Feely kicks the ball out of bounds on the ensuing kickoff. That gave the Ravens great field position, and they marched the ball right down the field. I thought for sure that they were going to score the winning touchdown, but the Dolphins defense held in there and forced them to kick the tying field goal. Miami took a knee after receiving the kickoff, and in to overtime we headed.

After the Ravens won the toss, it felt like most of the Dolphins' momentum was gone. The defense was obviously worn out, and the earlier shot at winning the game had come and gone. Baltimore drove down the field, then set up for the winning field goal. At this point I was glad that the radio announcers were discussing Stover's perfect overtime record. Normally, I'm yelling at the commentators to shut the hell up because they're jinxing my team, but not this time. And what do you know? Stover fucking missed it! I turned to my buddy, and yelled "he missed it, no fucking way!" Right then, I knew that Miami had a chance.

They started out with a run for a loss. Then followed that up with a Cleo Lemon rush for a few yards. Just like that, it was third and decently long. What happened next is something I will never forget. Remember, I was listening to it on the radio so I had to rely on the Miami announcers to let me know what was happening. They tell me that Lemon throws a little in pass, and that the receiver has it and is turning up field. They start counting down the yardage, "40, 45, 50, 45" and then the words I've been waiting for all year, "he might score, it looks like Camarillo is going to score, the Dolphins are going to win!" I couldn't believe it. A few seconds later the replay flashed up on the CBS postgame report, and my buddy and I got to see it unfold. At that point, we were still jumping around and high-fiving like Miami had won the Super Bowl. We calmed down just enough to see Camarillo roll into the end zone untouched, and then quickly resumed the celebration afterwards. A season of futility had been erased with that 64-yard touchdown strike, and even now a part of me can't believe it.

I told a few people that asked me what I wanted for Christmas that I would take a Miami win over New England on the 23rd. Well, that's still true, but Christmas came about a week early for this Miami fan. My Miami Dolphins won, and I couldn't be any happier.