Bill Stanfill arrived in Miami already carrying a résumé. At Georgia, he helped the Bulldogs win the Cotton Bowl, earned All-American honors as a senior, and took home the Outland Trophy as the top interior lineman in college football. The Dolphins drafted him 11th overall in 1969, and he stepped into a defense still finding its identity but about to become one of the best in the league.

He made the AFL All-Star Game as a rookie and then settled into a four-year Pro Bowl run from 1971 through 1974. During that stretch, he was a constant on the right side of the line, part of the group that won Super Bowl VII and Super Bowl VIII. In 1972, he earned first-team All-Pro while the Dolphins went undefeated, and the following year he unofficially led the NFL with 18.5 sacks. Those peak seasons showed a defensive end who could rush the passer and hold the edge against the run, making him a steady piece of a unit that didn’t rely on one star.

What set Stanfill apart was the combination of size and quickness for the era. At 6-foot-5 and around 250 pounds, he was big enough to set the edge and disrupt running plays, yet he still got off the line fast enough to pressure the quarterback. He was not the flashiest rusher on those Dolphins teams, but he was consistent, and opposing offenses rarely found a soft side of the line when he was healthy. The unofficial sack total and the string of Pro Bowls reflected a player who was effective on both run and pass downs.

Knee and neck problems cut into his production in 1975 and 1976. He started fewer games, the sack numbers dropped, and by the end of the 1976 season it was clear the body was no longer cooperating. He retired before he turned 30, after eight seasons spent with the Dolphins. Sacks were not an official statistic at the time, but he is credited with 69.5 for his career, a total that stood as the franchise record for years. The Dolphins placed him on their Honor Roll in 2010.