Marlin Briscoe passed away on Sunday. He was a member of the Miami Dolphins’ two Super Bowl victory teams and was the first Black starting quarterback in the American Football League more than 50 years ago.
The Associated Press was informed by his daughter, Angela Marriott, that Briscoe, 76, passed away in a Norwalk, California, hospital from pneumonia. His legs’ circulation problems had sent him to the hospital. Heart failure was reported to be the cause of death of the Dolphins.
With four touchdown receptions, Briscoe led the flawless 1972 Dolphins. The next year, as Miami defended its Super Bowl championship, he was the team’s top receiver, catching more passes than Paul Warfield, who would go on to become a Hall of Fame player in the NFL.
Before being selected by the Denver Broncos in the 14th round of the 1968 NFL Draft as a cornerback, Briscoe, a native of Omaha, Nebraska, was a standout quarterback at Omaha University. If he didn’t get a chance to try out as quarterback, Briscoe informed the squad he would go back home and become a teacher. After Denver accepted an audition, the 5-foot-10 powerhouse known as “The Magician” was added to the starting lineup on October 6.
In five games that season, Briscoe started. Having passed for 1,589 yards and 14 touchdowns and rushed for 308 yards and three more, he finished second for AFL rookie of the year.
He requested to be released from Denver in 1969 after not being given the opportunity to compete for the quarterback position.
After moving to Buffalo, he became one of the top receivers in the newly combined NFL in 1970. That season, Briscoe was an All-Pro who led the league in yards (1,036) and catches (57).
After that, he was dealt to the Dolphins in exchange for a first-round selection, and he played for them for three seasons, including the 17-0 season of 1972 in which he caught 16 passes for 279 yards and four touchdowns. On trick plays that season, he also completed all three of his passes.
He caught 57 receptions for 858 yards (15.1 average) and eight touchdowns in three seasons (28 games, 20 starts) with Miami.
With the first-round pick they received in exchange, the Bills also came out ahead, as Joe Delamielleure went on to become a Hall of Fame guard.
Briscoe’s difficult post-NFL years
Briscoe had financial difficulties after retiring in 1976. His Super Bowl rings, which were pledged as security for an unpaid loan, are purportedly lost. He was taken into custody twice for possessing tiny amounts of cocaine, in 1988 and 1989.
Yet in the end, he cleaned himself up without the use of a structured treatment plan. He afterwards started volunteering with Boys & Girls Clubs in California, rising to the position of director of clubs in Watts and Long Beach.
Nevertheless, many people, including President Barack Obama, will never forget his notoriety as the first Black quarterback in the AFL.
In 2013, Briscoe was one of the 1972 Dolphins honored at the White House. The President shook hands with Obama and remarked, “I know you.” You’re breaking new ground.
Before the 2021 season, Denver established a diversity coaching fellowship in his honor.
In 2016, Briscoe received his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame.
