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1969 Baltimore Colts season

17th season in franchise history

17th season in franchise history

FieldValue
teamBaltimore Colts
year1969
record8–5–1
division_place2nd Coastal
ownerCarroll Rosenbloom
general managerHarry Hulmes
coachDon Shula
stadiumMemorial Stadium
playoffsDid not qualify
shortnavlinkColts seasons

The 1969 Baltimore Colts season was the 17th season for the team in the National Football League. The Colts finished the National Football League's 1969 season with a record of 8 wins, 5 losses and 1 tie. Led by seventh-year head coach Don Shula, Baltimore finished second in the Western Conference's Coastal division, well behind the Los Angeles Rams (11–3).

Many attributed the disappointing season to the hangover of losing to the heavy-underdog New York Jets in Super Bowl III in January 1969. It is one of the first instances of a Super Bowl hangover – in which the team that played in a Super Bowl the previous season underperforms in the next season.

A disappointing 20–17 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in week 9 dropped the Colts to a 5–4 record and put the Colts four full games behind the unbeaten Los Angeles Rams in the division. After the defeat head coach Shula declared, "It looks like we are out of it. I'm disappointed that we went without giving them [the Rams] a battle for it."

In February 1970, two months after the season, Shula departed for the Miami Dolphins.

NFL/AFL draft

Main article: 1969 NFL/AFL draft

Personnel

Staff/coaches

1969 Baltimore Colts staff
Front office

Roster

  • Dennis Nelson T (Miltitary) [[Image:Injury icon.svg|7px]]
  • Robbie Nichols LB (Miltitary) [[Image:Injury icon.svg|7px]]
  • George Wright DT (Miltitary) [[Image:Injury icon.svg|7px]]

Regular season

Schedule

Main article: 1969 NFL season

Baltimore Coltsyear=1969border=2}}"WeekBaltimore Coltsyear=1969border=2}}"DateBaltimore Coltsyear=1969border=2}}"OpponentBaltimore Coltsyear=1969border=2}}"ResultBaltimore Coltsyear=1969border=2}}"RecordBaltimore Coltsyear=1969border=2}}"VenueBaltimore Coltsyear=1969border=2}}"AttendanceBaltimore Coltsyear=1969border=2}}"Recap1234567891011121314
September 21Los Angeles RamsL 20–270–1Memorial Stadium56,864Recap
September 28at Minnesota VikingsL 14–520–2Metropolitan Stadium47,644Recap
October 5at Atlanta FalconsW 21–141–2Grant Field57,806Recap
Philadelphia EaglesW 24–202–2Memorial Stadium56,864Recap
October 19at New Orleans SaintsW 30–103–2Tulane Stadium80,636Recap
October 26San Francisco 49ersL 21–243–3Memorial Stadium60,238Recap
November 2Washington RedskinsW 41–174–3Memorial Stadium60,238Recap
November 9Green Bay PackersW 14–65–3Memorial Stadium60,238Recap
November 16at San Francisco 49ersL 17–205–4Kezar Stadium38,472Recap
November 23at Chicago BearsW 24–216–4Wrigley Field45,455Recap
November 30Atlanta FalconsW 13–67–4Memorial Stadium60,238Recap
December 7Detroit LionsT 17–177–4–1Memorial Stadium60,238Recap
at Dallas CowboysL 10–277–5–1Cotton Bowl63,191Recap
December 21at Los Angeles RamsW 13–78–5–1Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum73,326Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Season summary

Week 1 vs Rams

First quarter

  • LA – Bruce Gossett 29-yard field goal. ''Rams 3–0. '''Drive:''''' Second quarter
  • BAL – Tom Mitchell 13-yard pass from Johnny Unitas (Lou Michaels kick). ''Colts 7–3. '''Drive:'''''
  • LA – Billy Truax 4-yard pass from Roman Gabriel (Bruce Gossett kick). ''Rams 10–7. '''Drive:'''''
  • BAL – Lou Michaels 15-yard field goal. ''Tie 10–10. '''Drive:''''' Third quarter
  • BAL – Jimmy Orr 41-yard pass from Johnny Unitas (Lou Michaels kick). ''Colts 17–10. '''Drive:'''''
  • LA – Willie Ellison 14-yard pass from Roman Gabriel (Bruce Gossett kick). ''Tie 17–17. '''Drive:'''''
  • LA – Bruce Gossett 15-yard field goal. ''Rams 20–17. '''Drive:''''' Fourth quarter
  • LA – Wendell Tucker 16-yard pass from Roman Gabriel (Bruce Gossett kick). ''Rams 27–17. '''Drive:'''''
  • BAL – Lou Michaels 41-yard field goal. ''Rams 27–20. '''Drive:''''' ;Top passers
  • LA – Roman Gabriel – 20/33, 268 yards, 3 TD
  • BAL – Johnny Unitas – 20/42, 297 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT ;Top rushers
  • LA – Larry Smith – 10 rushes, 73 yards
  • BAL – Preston Pearson – 11 rushes, 43 yards ;Top receivers
  • LA – Wendell Tucker – 6 receptions, 90 yards, TD
  • BAL – Jimmy Orr – 5 receptions, 87 yards, TD

Week 6 vs 49ers

  • No scoring plays Second quarter
  • SF — Tommy Davis 18-yard field goal. 49ers 3–0
  • BAL — Tom Matte 11-yard pass from Johnny Unitas (Lou Michaels kick). Colts 7–3
  • SF — Ken Willard 5-yard rush (Tommy Davis kick). 49ers 10–7 Third quarter
  • SF — Dick Witcher 18-yard pass from Steve Spurrier (Tommy Davis kick). 49ers 17–7
  • SF — John Woitt 57-yard interception return (Tommy Davis kick). 49ers 24–7
  • BAL — Jimmy Orr 6 yard pass from Johnny Unitas (Lou Michaels kick). 49ers 24–14 Fourth quarter
  • BAL — Tom Matte 1 yard rush (Lou Michaels kick). 49ers 24–21 ;Top passers
  • SF — Steve Spurrier – 18/30, 205 yards, TD, INT
  • BAL — Johnny Unitas – 19/37, 300 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT ;Top rushers
  • SF — Doug Cunningham – 13 rushes, 51 yards
  • BAL — Tom Matte – 17 rushes, 81 yards, TD ;Top receivers
  • SF — Dick Witcher – 3 receptions, 54 yards, TD
  • BAL — Jimmy Orr – 8 receptions, 146 yards, TD

The loss ended the Colts 13-game winning streak against the 49ers, losing to them for the first time since the 1962 season. This would be the last time the 49ers would visit the Colts until 1989, by when Robert Irsay had moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The 49ers would next play in Baltimore when meeting the Ravens in 2003.

Standings

References

References

  1. Cameron C. Snyder, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-baltimore-sun-baltimore-head-coach-d/140893160/ "Shula Thinks Colts are Out of It,"] ''Baltimore Sun,'' Nov. 17, 1969, p. 27.
  2. (February 19, 1970). "Shula replaces Miami's Wilson". Milwaukee Sentinel.
  3. (February 19, 1970). "Dollar signs convince Shula to jump to Miami Dolphins". Eugene Register-Guard.
  4. "1969 Baltimore Colts Draftees". Pro Football Reference.
  5. "Los Angeles Rams at Baltimore Colts — September 21st, 1969".
  6. "San Francisco 49ers at Baltimore Colts — October 26th, 1969".
  7. Urena, Ivan. (2014). "Pro Football Schedules: A Complete Historical Guide from 1933 to the Present". [[McFarland & Company]].
  8. "Baltimore Ravens vs. San Francisco 49ers Results". The Football Database.
Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

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