Jake Scott and Dick Anderson formed what former Dolphins coach Don Shula called, “the greatest safety pairing in NFL history.” They would take a false first step against New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath to confuse him about the direction of their defense.
For more than five decades, they were friends, teammates and even business partners after combining their bonuses from the 1971 season’s Super Bowl to buy a Colorado ranch.
“Now I’m answering the phone,” Anderson said Thursday night, “telling everyone Jake died.”
Scott died after falling and hitting his head on the ground this week in his Atlanta home. He was 75.
Scott was the Most Valuable Player of the 1972 Perfect Season’s Super Bowl after his two interceptions helped defeat Washington and secure the Dolphins’ undefeated season. He still leads the franchise with 35 career interceptions and has his name on the stadium’s Honor Roll for exceptional Dolphins.
“To lose a teammate and a friend and a partner for all those years, no words can express how I feel,” said Anderson, who played safety opposite Scott during those great Dolphins teams.
Scott came to the Dolphins in a move that told of the full package the Dolphins were getting. He feuded with University of Georgia coach Vince Dooley and left the school as a junior in 1969. The NFL didn’t accept underclassmen at the time, and Scott played in Canada for a year.
Scott’s college teammate, Bill Stanfill, was a Dolphins defensive end and told the team how Scott wanted to play in the NFL. The Dolphins used that insider knowledge to draft him with a seventh-round pick in 1970.
It might have been the best draft value in franchise history, as Scott went on to play in five Pro Bowls and still is the franchise’s career interception leader with 35.
Scott also was known for playing hurt. He played the 1971 season’s Super Bowl with two broken wrists that caused him to say, “I know who my friends are when I go to the bathroom.” Before the 1972 season’s Super Bowl he was questionable with a bad shoulder, and the fact his status was in doubt caused oddsmaker Jimmy “The Greek” Snyder to move the betting line from Washington as a two- to a three-point favorite.
Scott was traded in 1976 after feuding with Shula. Their split continued for more than three decades until they hugged each other at a sports memorabilia show in 2009 as teammates applauded.
“The hell with it, it’d been too many years,” Scott said. “No sense in holding a grudge with Shula for 112 years.”
Scott split time between Hawaii and Atlanta in his retirement.
“We are saddened to learn of the passing of Jake Scott,” the Dolphins said in a statement. “Jake made an impact from the day he joined the Dolphins in 1970, going on to earn five Pro Bowl selections, a place on the Dolphins Honor Roll and was the MVP of Super Bowl VII, capping off the only perfect season in NFL history.”
It added: “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends. He will always have a place in our hearts and memories.”
Scott becomes the latest in a growing list off the 1972 Perfect Season team to die recently. Shula died in May. Running back Jim Kiick died in June. In 2019, Nick Buoniconti, Jim Langer and Bob Kuechenberg passed away.
