Team History: Colts went from Marchetti to Manning with a midnight move in between

Team History: Colts went from Marchetti to Manning with a midnight move in between

Indianapolis features a strong horse and auto racing culture, but the success of the Colts, especially under head coach Tony Dungy and quarterback Peyton Manning, has given football an identity in the city. However, long before the team’s Super Bowl XLI championship after the 2006 season, several clubs tried to make their way through the early days of professional football.

Those teams were members of the American Professional Football Association (APFA), the NFL’s precursor that operated in 1920-21. The Muncie Flyers played just three games in those two seasons, going 0-3 and getting outscored 73-0. The Evansville Crimson Giants began to play in 1921, finishing sixth with a 3-2 record. They went 0-3 the following year before folding.

On the shores of Lake Michigan, the Hammond Pros played in the APFA and the NFL for seven seasons. The club fared no better than the Flyers or Crimson Giants, finishing with a 7-28-4 record, including two winless years and a scoreless six-game session in 1922. After the NFL decided to scale down to 12 teams after the 1926 season, Indiana did not field a professional football team for nearly six decades.

The Colts did not start playing in the Hoosier State until 1984. The franchise began as the Dallas Texans in 1952. However, the franchise struggled, eventually moving its home base to Hershey, Pa. After the season, the league sold the franchise’s assets to Baltimore businessman Carroll Rosenbloom. The team was renamed the Colts after the horses that ran in the city’s Preakness Stakes, as well as the city’s previous AAFC and NFL entry that dissolved after the 1950 season.

Baltimore struggled to a 3-9 record in 1953 under head coach Keith Molesworth, who was a quarterback on the Bears teams of the early 1930s that featured Red Grange and Bronko Nagurski. The inaugural club featured defensive linemen Gino Marchetti and Art Donovan, as well as linebacker Bill Pellington, who would all spend quite a few years with the franchise.

Molesworth left after one season, and he was replaced by Wilbur “Weeb” Ewbank, who had ties to legendary Browns coach Paul Brown. Both starred as quarterbacks at Ohio State and had military backgrounds. In 1943, Ewbank joined the U. S. Navy and was assigned to the Great Lakes training station, near Chicago, where Brown coached the base’s football team. Ewbank was his assistant and also coached the basketball team. A few years later, Brown brought Ewbank to Cleveland, where he was part of five AAFC and NFL Championship teams.

The Colts started showing defensive improvement and also brought in some offensive weapons. The best of the bunch was quarterback Johnny Unitas, a Pittsburgh native who had been cut from his hometown Steelers. Unitas teamed with running backs Lenny Moore and Alan Ameche, as well as receiver Raymond Berry and tight end Jim Mutscheller to create a formidable offense. On the other side of the ball, lineman Ordell Braase and linebacker Don Shinnick added toughness, and Marchetti had turned into one of the most feared defensive players in the NFL.

After a 7-5 record in 1957, the Colts took a leap the following season. Unitas led the best offense in football to a 9-3 mark and a date with the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.

Baltimore took a 14-3 halftime lead on an Ameche touchdown run and a Unitas pass to Berry. However, the Giants worked their way back into the game. Mel Triplett scored on a one-yard run in the third quarter and Charley Conerly found Frank Gifford with a 15-yard touchdown pass for a 17-14 New York lead early in the fourth.

After several failed attempts to tie the game, the Colts caught a break. The Giants decided to punt from their own 40, and Unitas led his team on what is now called a “two-minute drill.” He found Moore with a pass to convert a critical third down, then hit Berry with three straight passes to set up Steve Myhra’s 20-yard field goal to tie the score at 17-17 with seven seconds left.

Despite Marchetti leaving the game with a broken ankle, the Colts defense forced the Giants into a three-and-out in overtime. United took over and led Baltimore on a 13-play, 80-yard drive that culminated in Ameche’s one-yard touchdown run. The Colts had won their first title in what would come to be known as the “Greatest Game Ever Played.”

In 1959, Baltimore went 9-3 and again defeated the Giants for the NFL Championship, this time 31-16. However, the Colts did not return to the playoffs under Ewbank, who was fired by Rosenbloom after the 1962 season.

Ewbank’s replacement was Don Shula, a former Colts player who was the defensive coordinator with the Detroit Lions. After an 8-6 season in 1963, Baltimore won the West Division with a 12-2 mark. The Browns defense controlled Unitas and the Colts could not stop quarterback Frank Ryan in Cleveland’s 17-0 victory.

Baltimore had a winning record every season under Shula, and the team went to the playoffs twice more. The Colts had a powerful offense and an 11-1-2 mark in 1967, but they lost a tiebreaker to the Los Angeles Rams, who had finished with the same record.

The Colts were even better the following year, finishing 13-1 and allowing just over 10 points per game. They handled the Vikings and shut out the Browns to reach Super Bowl III, where they were a 14-point favorite over Ewbank and the New York Jets. However, Unitas had been dealing with an elbow injury all season and backup Earl Morrall was pressed into service. The Jets had four interceptions, and Joe Namath and Matt Snell led New York to a 16-7 victory. Shula was fired despite an 8-5-1 record in 1969.

Offensive Coordinator Don McCafferty took over as head coach and the Colts went 11-2-1, winning the AFC East in the first year after the AFL-NFL merger. Wins over Cincinnati and Oakland propelled Baltimore into Super Bowl V. Unitas and Morrall both played in the 16-13 victory, and rookie Jim O’Brien kicked a game-winning field goal with nine seconds remaining.

The Colts went 10-4 in 1971 but fell to Shula and the Dolphins in the AFC Championship Game. Baltimore started 1-4 the following season. General manager Joe Thomas ordered McCafferty to bench Unitas, and when the coach refused, he was fired.

In addition to the coaching change, there was also an ownership change. Rosenbloom was at odds with city officials over Baltimore Memorial Stadium, so he traded franchises with Rams owner Robert Irsay, who had recently purchased the team. Also, after the 1972 season, Unitas was traded to the Chargers.

The Colts then suffered through a stretch where they made the playoffs just four times in 23 seasons. Three of those appearances came in the mid-1970s under Ted Marchibroda, a former player who was the offensive coordinator of the Washington Redskins.

Baltimore sank to 0-8-1 in the strike-shortened 1982 season. The team selected quarterback John Elway with the first pick in the draft, but he refused to sign with them and instead forced a trade to Denver.

After another mediocre season the following year, Irsay discussed moving the Colts to Indianapolis. The city of Baltimore and the state of Maryland tried to block the move, citing eminent domain, a government tactic used to take over control of private property for public use. In response, Irsay called William Hudnut, and the Indianapolis mayor gave the owner a $12.5 million loan and the use of the newly built Hoosier Dome. In addition, he sent 15 Mayflower moving trucks to the Colts’ facility.

The trucks arrived late at night, and within eight hours the team and all its assets were out of Baltimore. Later that day, March 29, 1984, the Maryland House of Delegates passed the eminent domain bill, but by then it was too late.

Irsay’s club saw more of the same poor play in their new home. The Colts had just one playoff season over the first 11 years in Indianapolis. Marchibroda returned and led the team to the playoffs twice, including a late loss to the Steelers in the 1995 AFC Championship Game, but he was let go after demanding a two-year contract extension.

After a 3-13 record in 1997, the Colts found themselves picking first in the 1998 draft. They selected Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning with the first pick, and he did not disappoint, leading Indianapolis to the playoffs 11 times in 13 seasons. However, Irsay would not be able to see any of the team’s success. Irsay passed away in 1997 after a stroke and congestive heart failure. His son, Jim, took over control of the team after a legal battle with his stepmother.

Indianapolis was one of the best teams in the NFL during the regular season, but could not break through in the playoffs, most notably losing to the Patriots in the 2003 AFC Championship Game. However, three years later, a club led by Manning, along with running back Joseph Addai and wide receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne, went 12-4 and finally dethroned New England to reach Super Bowl XLI.

Manning threw a touchdown pass, bruising back Dominic Rhodes ran for another score and Kelvin Hayden sealed the 29-17 victory, returning a Rex Grossman interception 56 yards for a touchdown. The win gave the Colts their first championship in 37 years.

Despite head coach Tony Dungy retiring after the 2008 season, Indianapolis made the playoffs the next four years. Manning won his fourth NFL MVP Award in 2009, and he led the team to a 14-2 record and Super Bowl XLIV. The Colts’ dream season ended there. Drew Brees threw two touchdown passes and Tracy Porter returned a Manning interception 74 yards for a score, as the Saints came through with a 31-17 victory.

Before the 2011 season, Manning had neck surgery and missed the entire year. The team released him rather than pay him a $28 million roster bonus. The Colts fell to 2-14 and used the first pick in the draft to select Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck.

Indianapolis went 11-5 and made the playoffs in each of the next three seasons. The Colts reached the AFC Championship Game in 2014, losing to the Patriots, 45-7. Three rough seasons followed, with Luck missing most of 2015 and all of 2017 with shoulder issues.

The Colts rebounded in 2018. Luck returned to lead the team to a 10-6 record and a playoff appearance. Rookies Quenton Nelson (guard) and Darius Leonard (linebacker) were named to the All-Pro team, and receiver T.Y. Hilton was joined by tight end Eric Ebron, who caught a career-high 13 touchdown passes.

This season, Indianapolis added receiver Devin Funchess and edge rusher Justin Houston from the Chiefs, who knocked the Colts out in the Division round last year.

-By: Kevin Rakas