Life is full of regrets, and the Miami Dolphins will be among the NFL teams with at least one big one when they watch Russell Wilson play Sunday in Super Bowl XLIV.
Just ahead of Sunday's big game, ESPN reported on how the Seattle Seahawks were able to find many of their key starters in the 2012 NFL Draft. One nugget that stands out?
The Dolphins interviewed Bret Bielema for their head-coaching job in 2012.
The reason talks between Bielema and the Dolphins broke off? Russell Wilson.
Bielema, who was then Wisconsin's head coach, says he insisted the Dolphins draft Wilson, his former Badgers signal-caller, and told the team's brass they would need to take him in the second round. That's when the Dolphins threw up their hands and said thanks but no thanks, moving on to hire Joe Philbin.
"One hundred percent," Bielema said. "They all looked at me like, 'You can't say that. That's the difference between college and pro. He's undersized. He can't throw.' I was like, 'OK, all right,' and I honestly, that day, kind of pulled myself out of it."
Bielema had lured Wilson to Madison as a graduate transfer and the pair ended up winning a Big Ten title and reaching the Rose Bowl. With Miami out of the picture as a coaching option, the hard-nosed head coach ended up making the surprising jump from Wisconsin to Arkansas after the 2012 season.
Wilson, of course, was drafted by the Seahawks in the third round and is now aiming for back-to-back Super Bowl titles.
Miami didn't do too bad when it came to picking a QB in 2012, though. The Dolphins drafted Ryan Tannehill at No. 8 overall that year and he has put together a solid start to his career, although he certainly hasn't come close to reaching Wilson's level of success.
You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.
