the playoffs as a wild card, losing to Buffalo 37–22 in the first round. Following the season, Don Shula (pressed to retire) became an executive in the Dolphins’ front office. Jimmy Johnson, who had won a collegiate national championship at the University of Miami and two Super Bowls with the Dallas Cowboys, was named as Shula's replacement. In 1996, Miami finished 8–8 and out of the playoffs, with rookie Karim Abdul-Jabbar's 1,116-yard rushing season one of the lone bright spots. In 1997, Miami stumbled late and backed into the playoffs with a 9–7 season, losing to the New England Patriots 17–3 in the wild card round. Miami had a solid 10–6 season in 1998 with a career season for receiver O.J. McDuffie, but it was not enough to get past the New York Jets into first place in the division. The Dolphins beat the Bills 24–17 in the wild card round, but lost in the next round to the eventual champion Denver Broncos, 38–3 (the Broncos lost only two regular season games in 1998, one of which was to the Dolphins). In 1999, Marino was injured during a game in which backup quarterback Damon Huard led a comeback. During the previous two years, the Broncos had won the Super Bowl, ending years of futility for their quarterback, John Elway. Marino was now being hailed as the next great success story, but it was not to be. Miami proceeded to go 2–6 in their last eight games, but still backed into the playoffs at 9–7. After a close 20–17 win at Seattle in the wild card round, the Dolphins faced the Jacksonville Jaguars in the divisional round and suffered a disastrous 62–7 rout, the second most lopsided postseason game in NFL history after the 1940 NFL Championship. Marino subsequently announced his retirement, and head coach Jimmy Johnson also left the team. 2000-2011: the Post-Marino Era Following Dan Marino's retirement, the Dolphins shuffled thirteen quarterbacks and five head coaches during the 2000s, only making the postseason three times during that decade. 2000-2004: Dave Wannstedt's tenure as coach 2000 Before the 2000 season, Dave Wannstedt, formerly of the Chicago Bears, became the new head coach, and ex-Jacksonville Jaguars backup Jay Fiedler became the new starting quarterback, even though Damon Huard had been considered the favorite. Despite lowered expectations, the defense broke through with Jason Taylor and Trace Armstrong each getting 10 sacks, and