O.J. Simpson on the Dolphins? ‘I would have won 5 or 6 Super Bowls' | Habib

This was well after the 1,000-yard seasons. Well after running through airports in commercials and commentating on “Monday Night Football.” And, yes, well after the trial of the decade.

O.J. Simpson was 55. All anybody wanted to talk about was the trial and the double murders. So when I approached his lawyer wanting to talk to Simpson about his rivalry with the Miami Dolphins, Simpson was happy to talk.

And talk.

And talk some more.

The phone conversation, in November 2002, lasted about 30 minutes, perhaps 45, and came to mind Thursday when it was announced that Simpson had died of cancer at age 76. The interview was an eternity by today’s standards but Simpson wanted to drive home how much respect he had for the Super Bowl-winning Dolphins, particularly the “No-Name Defense” coached by Don Shula’s top assistant, Bill Arnsparger.

“I played in one playoff game my entire career,” Simpson said. “Give me that No-Name Defense, I would have won five or six Super Bowls.”

More: O.J. Simpson dead of cancer at age 76

Playing with the No-Names would have meant Simpson was not with the Buffalo Bills. Being a division rival, Simpson faced the Dolphins 16 times, most of any team except the New York Jets. His record vs. Miami: 1-15.

“I won my second game against the Dolphins in 1969 — and then I never won another game against the Dolphins. So I’m not the guy to be asking about this,” Simpson joked.

He had his facts straight. After that second meeting, he never beat Miami again, not in 14 clashes, most of which weren’t close. Simpson was a Hall of Fame running back who amassed 11,236 yards, yet all those times he lined up against Miami, he managed 100 yards only twice.

The first such time? You don’t want to ask surviving members of the No-Name Defense about that. Not ever. It happened in November 1973 in Buffalo. Miami won 17-0 but Simpson finished with 20 carries for 120 yards. If you were on the No-Name Defense, you considered it a personal affront for any back to break the 100-yard barrier, as defensive tackle Manny Fernandez explained years later.

“He had about 30 yards going into the fourth quarter and we went into a prevent defense,” Fernandez said. “And rather than try to win the game, they tried to get O.J. his 100 yards.”

Fernandez said the Dolphins backed off until the Bills approached the red zone, then shifted to their usual defense.

“They lost yards every play,” Fernandez said. “And you should have seen these idiots celebrating when they announced O.J. got his 100 yards.”

That day didn’t seem to be on Simpson’s mind nearly as much as the other meetings. Several times, he circled back to Nick Buoniconti, the Dolphins’ middle linebacker who had just joined Simpson in the Hall of Fame.

“Nick was the most underrated player that I played against,” SImpson said. “Because me personally, he gave me the most trouble. Not because he’s intimidating or he’s physical. He’s in the backfield all the time. He’s so damn smart. Whenever we tried to audible he seemed to know what our audible was. I can remember two occasions he literally beat me to the handoff. … Excuse this expression: He was a booger you can’t shake.”

The respect Simpson maintained for the Dolphins wasn’t a one-way street. Simpson was nicknamed “Juice.” His offensive line picked up the nickname “The Electric Company” because it turned on the Juice.

“A bunch of linemen who couldn’t block for anybody,” Fernandez said. “O.J. could have rushed for 3,000 yards behind our line. … He was elusive.”

O.J. Simpson's elusiveness concerned No-Name Defense

Dolphins running back Jim Kiick added: “I saw him put a move on Dick Anderson coming outside. Dick was a good tackler, and he was only this far (a couple of feet) from the sideline, and he made it look like he was going to run out of bounds and he went like that and he cut back.”

Anderson was an All-Pro safety and 1973 defensive player of the year. Plus, he was coached by Arnsparger, whom Simpson called the “greatest defensive coach ever.”

“Our whole scheme was to not let him get outside,” Anderson said. “The key was to get him boxed in so Nick could make the tackle. Once he got outside, with his speed, he could outrun you.”

Even well after retirement, Simpson could out-talk the Dolphins. He had a friendly rivalry with Mercury Morris, a Dolphins 1,000-yard rusher also feared in the open field.

More: Nicole Simpson’s ex-boyfriend: ‘I felt guilty, that O.J. Simpson had beaten her, because of me’

“Matter of fact I saw him, believe it or not, in Kmart oh, maybe two-three weeks ago,” Simpson said. “I was teasing him. I said to the cashier, ‘This is the second-best running back when he was in college.’ ”

The Dolphins combined an efficient offense with their No-Name Defense to go 17-0 in 1972. Players on that team think there’s no debate it was the greatest team ever.

Simpson’s view?

“Obviously, they’re right there,” he said. “I couldn’t honestly tell you they were the best team I ever played with because I didn’t feel that.

“I thought they were right there.”

Dolphins reporter Hal Habib can be reached at hhabib@pbpost.com. Follow him on social media @gunnerhal.

Click here to subscribe.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: O.J. Simpson dies of cancer. Once said he'd have won 5 or 6 Super Bowls with Dolphins