Dan Marino Net Worth

What Is Dan Marino's Net Worth, Career Earnings, and Salary?

Dan Marino is a retired American football player who has a net worth of $50 million. Dan Marino is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most prolific quarterbacks in NFL history, having played 17 seasons (1983–1999) for the Miami Dolphins. After starring at the University of Pittsburgh, where he became a first-team All-American in 1981, Marino was selected 27th overall in the elite 1983 quarterback draft class, which included future Hall of Famers like John Elway and Jim Kelly.

He quickly emerged as a dominant force in the league. In his rookie season, Marino earned a Pro Bowl selection and set the tone for his career. His breakout came in 1984, when he shattered records with 5,084 passing yards and 48 touchdown passes, earning NFL MVP, Offensive Player of the Year, and All-Pro honors. That same year, he led the Dolphins to Super Bowl XIX; although they lost to the 49ers, Marino cemented himself as one of the top quarterbacks in football.

Over the course of his career, Marino compiled 61,361 passing yards and 420 touchdown passes—numbers that ranked among the best in NFL history upon his retirement. He was a nine-time Pro Bowler, six-time All-Pro, and led the league in passing yards five times. Marino also won Comeback Player of the Year in 1994 and the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award in 1998. Despite never winning a Super Bowl, he led the Dolphins to the playoffs ten times and retired with the most wins (155) of any quarterback without a title. He held over 40 NFL passing records at the time of his retirement, including being the first quarterback to throw for over 5,000 yards in a season and the first to reach 400 career touchdowns.

After retiring, Marino was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2005. He has worked as a broadcaster, served as a Dolphins executive, and launched the Dan Marino Foundation to support autism research.

Career Earnings and Endorsements

When he joined the Dolphins in 1983, he signed a four-year $2.1 million contract. In his final season, he earned $6 million per season. During his NFL career, Dan earned $51.5 million in total salary. He has also earned tens of millions from endorsements, which have continued well after retirement.

According to a New York Times profile of Marino in 2002, at that point, Dan Marino's net worth was $45 million, with roughly $23 million in liquid assets, $15 million in real estate, and several million dollars made in private investments, including a bank, office buildings, and a golf course. Unfortunately, some of those real estate assets and private investments would eventually turn belly up, as we detail in the final two sections of this article below. At the time of the interview, Dan was earning $2 million per year as a co-host of "Inside the NFL" and $1 million from endorsements with companies like AutoNation and Nabisco.

Early Life

Daniel Constantine Marino Jr. was born on September 15, 1961, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Raised alongside two sisters in a family with Italian and Polish ancestry, Dan attended Catholic schools as a child. He was initially skilled in both baseball and football during his high school days.

After graduating from high school, Marino attended the University of Pittsburgh and played with the Panthers from 1979 to 1982. During this period, the Panthers gained a number-one ranking in the nation and benefited from a talented squad, many of whom would later become successful in the NFL. Unfortunately, Dan's form dipped during his senior year, right before he entered the NFL draft.

Career

In 1983, Marino was drafted by the Miami Dolphins as the 27th overall pick in the first round. During his rookie season, Dan set several new records. By his second season, he had broken even more records, many of which still stand in 2020. Despite reaching the Super Bowl in 1984, the Dolphins lost against the 49ers.

During the middle of his career, Dan continued to play at a staggeringly high level of performance. In 1992, he led the league in passing yards. He continued to lead the Dolphins to further Super Bowls, and in 1996, he became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for 50,000 career passing yards. By 1999, he had thrown for 60,000 passing yards. His career would end one year later, and his final win was against the Seattle Seahawks.

Relationships

In 1985, Dan Marino married Claire D. Veazey. Over the course of their relationship, they have had six children together. In 2013, Dan admitted that he had an affair with a CBS employee back in 2005. As a result of this affair, Marino fathered a seventh child. He reportedly paid this CBS employee millions of dollars to keep their affair quiet in an effort to maintain his reputation.

Further Ventures

Marino became involved in a number of business ventures even before retiring. In 1997, he took on a marketing role at Team Cheever of the Indy Racing League. He then co-owned a NASCAR team with driver Bill Elliott at the wheel. In 1992, he established the Dan Marino Foundation, a philanthropic organization that has raised and distributed over $22 million for research and treatment of neurological diseases.

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Financial Issues

In 2012, it was reported that Marino had lost $13.6 million after a company called Digital Domain Media Group Inc. went bankrupt. However, the exact extent of his losses was difficult to determine. Those close to Dan stated that they had no idea how much the former quarterback had actually invested in the doomed company. One report stated that at one point, Dan's shares in the company were worth $14.5 million. After the value of each share dropped to 55 cents, many observers did the math and concluded that Marino had lost $13.6 million. Digital Domain Media Group is best known for creating a hologram of Tupac at the Coachella Music Festival.

Real Estate

In 2008, Marino was hit hard by the crashing real estate market, and he accepted a $600,000 loss when he sold a 9,250-square-foot home in Parkland. He and his wife had originally purchased the home in 2005 for $2.95 million. In 2009, it was reported that Dan was having trouble selling his home in Weston, Florida. In a bid to "sweeten the deal," Marino decked the house out with over $1.5 million worth of designer furniture and added it to the deal.

He and his wife Claire had originally listed the home for $15.9 million in 2006 before cutting the price down to $13.5 million. No buyers seemed interested in the 15,000-square-foot Tuscan home, which features 10 bedrooms, a pool, a 5,000-bottle wine cellar, and an outdoor pond with real bass swimming inside. The home is also situated on a peninsula with a 4.3-acre lot.

In 2011, it was announced that Dan had finally succeeded in selling his home, but for an insanely reduced price of $7.2 million. Although he received less than half of what he originally listed the home for, Marino still made a profit. This is because he purchased the home way back in 1995 for $2.15 million. Marino and his wife presumably didn't leave Weston, as they have another condo in the area that they have owned for some time.

In 2015, Dan and his wife bought another condo in Fort Lauderdale. Although the price was never revealed, units at the luxurious Auberge Beach Residences & Spa building start at a cool $1.8 million. Dan incurred another notable loss in 2018 when he sold a townhouse in Weston for $90,000 less than what he had originally purchased it for 11 years prior. Marino had purchased the condo for $655,000.

Reports show that the property had doubled in value in the six years before Marino's initial purchase of this condo. Unfortunately, the same pattern did not play out after Dan took ownership, and he was forced to accept a sum of $565,000 for the property 11 years later.

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