By CARL KOTALA
Florida Today

DAVIE, Fla. - Fighting to stay afloat in the AFC playoff race, the Miami Dolphins will have a little extra incentive Monday night against the Chicago Bears. The team will honor members of the 1972 Super Bowl championship team that went 17-0, and also retire the No. 39 jersey of Hall of Fame fullback Larry Csonka.

"I can't even imagine going undefeated," Dolphins defensive end Adewale Ogunleye aid. "For guys to do that, and take each game at a time and win each one like they did ... that's an amazing feat. We'll definitely be trying to get this win, not only for them, but just the fact that they're out there retiring Csonka's number.

"He's been a legend. They should have done that a long time ago. The crowd will be into it. We'll be into it. We'll be ready to go."

Monday's game won't hold the ramifications of the Dec. 2, 1985 meeting between the two teams, when Miami stopped the Bears 28-24 and prevented Chicago from matching the Dolphins' unbeaten record.

It is, however, a must-win game for the Dolphins (7-5), who are tied with the New England Patriots atop the AFC East and just a game ahead of the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills.

If the season were to end today, Miami would win the AFC East because of its earlier victory against the Patriots and host the Raiders in the first round of the playoffs.

But a lot of things can happen between now and then, including Miami missing the playoffs altogether.

In order to guarantee their postseason spot, and being able to play at home far into the playoffs, Miami needs to finish with four consecutive wins against the Bears, Oakland Raiders, Minnesota Vikings and Patriots.

Considering how tough it will be to go 4-0, most Dolphins players can't imagine another team going unbeaten the way the league is set up right now.

At least not any time soon.

"Oh man, that would be tough - especially with the parity in this league," cornerback Patrick Surtain said. "There are so many good teams in this league and even the bad teams, if you have an off game, they can jump up and beat you.

"It'll be hard to do, but records are made to be broken and I'm pretty sure a team will come along and break the record."

The last team that came close was the 1998 Broncos, who started out 13-0 before losing back-to-back games to the New York Giants and the Dolphins. Minnesota went 15-1 in the regular season that year but lost in Week 8. The 2001 St. Louis Rams team that went 14-2 dropped its first game in Week 7.

"In my opinion, I don't (think anybody will go undefeated). It's too difficult," Miami defensive end Jason Taylor said. "It's really a tribute to what the guys did back in 1972. It's an unbelievable feat. Minnesota had a real good chance a few years ago when they won 15 ballgames.

"We see how the league is nowadays. It's getting tougher and tougher. With free agency and the parity in the league, it's very difficult to do."

Dolphins coach Dave Wannstedt said that with a number of players changing teams from year to year, it's hard to maintain any continuity - which is one of many reasons why he doesn't see it happening again.

And while the '85 Bears team may not have gone undefeated, it is still revered around the Windy City, much like the '72 Dolphins are in South Florida.

"There's a lot of those guys that still live in Chicago. They are around and it is always talked about," Bears coach Dick Jauron said. "My belief in regards to that is that those guys will always be talked about, but they'll be talked about predominantly until the next group wins the world championship.

"Once you do that, then those guys will still be talked about. But the most recent group will be the most prominent group."

That's certainly not the case in South Florida, where the '73 team - which made it back-to-back Super Bowl titles - hardly gets mentioned. Since then, the Dolphins have reached the big game in 1982 and '84, losing both times.

The '72 team is remembered because it was perfect.

And that's a good reminder to have when you're simply going for a 4-0 finish.

"It'll be neat to have those guys in," Wannstedt said. "The Dolphins are one of the organizations in the league where there is a lot of tradition. The '72 team is at the top of that tradition. To have them all in to watch a game, I'm sure our guys will be excited about it."

Rookie tight end Randy McMichael wasn't even born until 1979, but even he said he recognized what honoring a 30-year-old anniversary means to the organization and its fans.

"It's going to be a real special night," McMichael said. "If we can bring home a victory, it would be even more special."

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