Have you ever wondered, "What ever happened to ..." some of your all-time favorite Dolphins players? In this exclusive series for MiamiDolphins.com, Dol-Fans can finally get the answer to that question about former quarterback Jay Fiedler. A free agent signee of the Dolphins in 2000, Fiedler played five seasons in Miami and helped lead the Dolphins to the 2000 AFC East Championship.

By Andy Kent
Special for MiamiDolphins.com

It wasn't a typical day at the beach last Thursday for former Miami Dolphins quarterback Jay Fiedler. But then again, there isn't much typical about Fiedler's life these days now that he has retired from professional football.

Fiedler, 36, was out on South Beach attempting to parlay his athleticism into a burgeoning career as a professional beach volleyball player, partnering with Coral Gables resident Marcos Maceau in the first qualifying match for the 2008 AVP CROCS Tour $200,000 Cuervo Gold Miami Open. Maceau's brother, Gaston, tried the same thing a year ago at Bicentennial Park in Downtown Miami with former Miami Heat center Rony Seikaly and achieved the same result – a quick exit.

Californians Russ Marchewka and Mike Placek, the top seeds in the qualifying bracket, disposed of Fiedler and Maceau, 21-13, 21-14, but not without leaving the sandy court without a high level of respect for Fiedler's ability to learn the game as quickly as he did. Fiedler actually came up with two perfectly timed blocks of Marchewka during the match that drew loud applause from those spectators who showed up early in the morning.

"You know I heard one of the funniest jokes I've ever heard from a ref, that apparently quarterbacks can block," Marchewka said. "He was fun to play against. He was very well-spirited and easy going and I had a good time. It made it fun. He wasn't trying to be too serious and it made me want to kind of keep the match going and let him have a little fun, too."

Fielder admitted that he hadn't touched a volleyball since he was a youngster at summer camp and during gym class in school, and having only met his partner the day before he realized the deck was stacked against him. But he left South Beach with a newfound respect for the sport of beach volleyball.

"It's definitely a lot tougher than it looks, especially out here on the sand," said Fiedler, who also was in town to do a football camp over the weekend at the Michael-Ann Russell Jewish Community Center in North Miami Beach with former Minnesota Vikings running back and current ESPN analyst Robert Smith along with some local coaches. "Just getting your feet moving in the proper position to make plays on it takes a lot out of you. It's a great workout and spiking the ball's a little bit like throwing (a football); it's the same kind of motion. Unfortunately, I had two surgeries on my throwing shoulder so I don't have as much power in my spike as I probably would have a couple of years ago."

The combined 27 points Fiedler and Macau scored exceeded his expectations, and he didn't rule out giving it another try, although as an owner of a minor-league basketball team and his own entertainment company he does not have much free time. As owner of the Continental Basketball Association's East Kentucky Miners and of JBF Entertainment, Fiedler has channeled his energies into the two ventures close to his heart.

With the basketball team, the Dartmouth grad feels like he can give some young basketball players a chance to carve out a similar path to the NBA as he did on his way to becoming an NFL quarterback for eight seasons, five of those (2000-04) with the Dolphins. His last game action came in 2005 with the New York Jets when he appeared in two games.

"I grew up on basketball, my dad was a high school basketball coach and it's great to work with the guys that are trying to make it to the next level," said Fiedler, who helped the Dolphins go 45-35 over his five-year span. "That's the kind of the path that I took, going through the World League and being out of football for a couple of year before breaking back into it. It's great to see these guys have dreams and give them a chance to showcase themselves in the CBA, and hopefully a couple of the guys that played for us this past year will make it through the NBA summer camps and we'll see them in the NBA next year."

As for his concert promotions company, Fiedler confirmed he is in the process of putting together a tour that possibly will feature NBA star Grant Hill's wife, singer Tamia, along with other yet-to-be-named acts, and he is looking to book a Miami date pretty soon.

Considering how much he has been juggling with his business ventures, Fiedler still managed to earn some praise from his partner on the beach, and didn't rule out giving it another shot next year. Maceau received some tips from his brother on how to best work with an athlete so new to the beach volleyball game.

"(Gatson) told me to just work on the basics, getting him to pass the ball, set the ball, keep it low, keep it under control and try not to miss too many serves," the 29-year-old Maceau said. "He just blew me away. I'm amazed the way he played today. I mean the way he was blocking was amazing, I think everybody saw. That's the number one seed in the qualifier and to get blocks like that is amazing.

"I told him, 'You're a much better blocker than I am.' He's got the athletic skill, coordination and timing just naturally. He was passing the jump serves, they were serving him tough, and he was getting the pass up. His timing was good and I got much more than I expected, that's for sure. I actually felt like we had a chance there for a little while to be honest with you."

Fiedler's two best seasons in Miami came in 2001 and 2002, when the Dolphins finished 11-5 and 9-7, respectively. In 2001, which was the only year he played in all 16 games, Fiedler completed 273-of-450 passes for 3,290 yards, 20 touchdowns and 19 interceptions. The next season he was 179-of-292 for 2,024 yards, 14 touchdowns and nine interceptions in just 11 games.