Dan Marino

I'm a Steelers fan. I've always been a Steelers fan. I will die a Steelers fan. But I'm also a football fan, and with that, there comes a time in life where you have to sit back and say, "That guy is a great player, even though he wasn't a Steeler."

This is Dan Marino for me.

Dan grew up in Pittsburgh. He was and continues to be a Steelers fan. That right there is reason enough to make him a member of my Hall of Fame, but I'll give you some more reasons why he deserves to be in the Hall.

He played football and baseball in high school. He was selected to the Parade High School All America team. He was also drafted to play baseball with the Kansas City Royals in the fourth round of 1979. He decided to pass up his baseball career and play for the University of Pittsburgh.

In college he broke all kinds of NCAA records including season and career records for completions and touchdowns.

He was then drafted by the Miami Dolphins and that first season, became the first rookie QB to start in the Pro Bowl.

And that was only the beginning of his career. Here's a list of some of the NFL records still held by Dan:

Most Completions, Career: 4,967
Most Yards Passing, Career: 61,361
Most Touchdown Passes, Career: 420
Most Yards Gained, Season: 5,084 in 1984
Most Games, 400 or more Yards Passing, Career: 13
Most Games, 400 or more Yards Passing, Season: 4 in 1984
Most Games, 300 or more Yards Passing, Career: 60
Most Seasons, 3,000 or more Yards Passing: 13 (1984-92, 1994-95, 1997-98)
Most Consecutive Seasons, 3,000 or more Yards Passing: 9 (1984-92)
Most Games, Four or more Touchdown Passes, Career: 21
Most Games, Four or more Touchdown Passes, Season: 6 in 1984
Most Consecutive Games, Four or more Touchdown Passes: 4 in 1984
Most Seasons, 40 or more Touchdown Passes: 2 (1984, 1986)
Most Seasons, 20 or more Touchdown Passes: 13 (1983-92, 1994-95, 1998)
Most Consecutive Seasons, 20 or more Touchdown Passes: 10 (1983-92)

He's been married for 20 years and is the father of six kids - five natural, one adopted. For this reason, Marino was named the NFL's Man of the Year in 1999.

As if that weren't enough to make him a member of the Hall of Fame, he was also on a Simpsons episode where Homer intercepts one of his passes and Marino tells his goons, Bubba and Hacksaw, to "Get that moron!"



So this one is to you, Dan Marino. Welcome to yet another Hall of Fame.