I don’t think Washington was in the market for a QB, so I don’t know that much changes in terms of who gets drafted. I do know that, if Woodley kicks ass in the fourth quarter (like, say, he leads two TD drives, one in the last 5 minutes, and he completes a last-minute comeback as Montana and Big Ben did later,) he probably has a ton of trade stock and little value to Marino in the future. I understand that Woodley May have been a fine QB but he was a diehard introvert and a poor choice of mentor for Marino.
What they get for Woodley could make a lot of difference - the Dolphins were on the cusp of a title in 1984 and 1985, and while they would have had a tough time beating the greatest 49ers and Bears teams ever, they would have put up better fights than the ‘84 Dolphins, who forgot to play the second half, and the ‘85 Pats, who pulled an upset of the aforementioned Dolphins and promptly got turned into hamburger meat by the aforementioned Bears. My guess? They lose both by a TD each, and maybe after a lull in the 1980s, Marino manages to break on through in the 1990s after having been so close before.
One possible interesting wrinkle - OTL’s ‘85 Bears were marred by a lot of resentment from Walter Payton, who didn’t score in the rout of the Pats. Even the goddamn Fridge got in the end zone but he didn’t - a team that scored five TDs couldn’t spare one for its best offensive player. If they had played a serious opponent rather than obvious cannon fodder, they may have had to count more on Payton. I picture the Bears winning by a score of, say, 24-17. Somewhere in those three TDs would be a handoff to Payton. So he stays in good spirits with the team, and they make another run in the future, possibly in 1987 in the strike-shortened season, averting the run by Doug Williams. I picture a weakened offensive output but better D against an overmatched Denver team for a score in the neighborhood of 31-3.
