The 1975 Baltimore Colts season was the 23rd season for the team in the National Football League. Under first-year head coach Ted Marchibroda, the Colts finished the 1975 season with 10 wins and 4 losses, and tied for first in the AFC East division with the Miami Dolphins; Baltimore won the division tiebreaker based on a head-to-head sweep of Miami — the first sweep of the Dolphins in their six years under head coach Don Shula.
The Colts won their opener, lost four straight, then swept their final nine games and narrowly edged the Dolphins for the division title. The turnaround season became forever known by Colts fans afterward as The Miracle on 33rd Street.
This was the first of three consecutive AFC East titles for the Colts. Hired in January, Marchibroda was previously the offensive coordinator for the Washington Redskins under head coach George Allen. The 1975 Colts coaching staff included 23-year-old assistant Bill Belichick, his first association with an NFL team and first coaching position.
Offseason Draft
1975 Baltimore Colts Draft Round Selection Player Position College Notes13Ken HuffGNorth Carolina353Mike WashingtonCBAlabama56Dave PearDTWashington480Marshall JohnsonWRHouston93Paul LinfordDTBYU5105Roosevelt LeaksRBTexas6131Don WestbrookWRNebraska7157Kim JonesRBColorado State160Steve JoachimQBTemple168Derrel LuceLBBaylor8184John BushongDEWestern Kentucky187Greg DenboerTEMichigan192Mario CageRBNorthwestern Louisiana9209Royce McKinneyDBKentucky State10236Phil WaganheimPMaryland11261David HazelWROhio State12288Brad StormLBIowa State13313John RomanGIdaho State14340Mike SmithCSMU15365John GoodieRBLangston16392Bill MaloufQBOle Miss399Mike EvavoldDTMacAlester416Robert SmithDBMaryland17417David McKnightLBGeorgia426Mike BengardDENorthwestern (Iowa)440Frank RusselWRMaryland
Personnel
Staff 1975 Baltimore Colts staff Front office President and treasurer – Robert Irsay General manager – Joe Thomas Assistant general manager – Ernie Accorsi
Coaching staff Head coach – Ted Marchibroda Staff assistant - Bill Belichick
Offensive coaches Receivers – Pete McCulley Offensive line – Whitey Dovell Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Maxie Baughan Defensive line – Jerry Smith Defensive backfield – Frank Lauterbur
Special teams coaches Special teams – George Boutselis
Final roster
Regular season
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap 1 September 21 at Chicago Bears W 35–7 1–0 Soldier Field 54,152 Recap 2 September 28 Oakland Raiders L 20–31 1–1 Memorial Stadium 40,657 Recap 3 October 5 at Los Angeles Rams L 13–24 1–2 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 62,491 Recap 4 October 12 Buffalo Bills L 31–38 1–3 Memorial Stadium 43,907 Recap 5 October 19 at New England Patriots L 10–21 1–4 Schaefer Stadium 51,417 Recap 6 October 26 at New York Jets W 45–28 2–4 Shea Stadium 55,137 Recap 7 November 2 Cleveland Browns W 21–7 3–4 Memorial Stadium 35,235 Recap 8 November 9 at Buffalo Bills W 42–35 4–4 Rich Stadium 77,320 Recap 9 November 16 New York Jets W 52–19 5–4 Memorial Stadium 52,097 Recap 10 November 23 at Miami Dolphins W 33–17 6–4 Orange Bowl 61,986 Recap 11 November 30 Kansas City Chiefs W 28–14 7–4 Memorial Stadium 42,122 Recap 12 December 7 at New York Giants W 21–0 8–4 Shea Stadium 49,863 Recap 13 December 14 Miami Dolphins W 10–7 9–4 Memorial Stadium 59,398 Recap 14 December 21 New England Patriots W 34–21 10–4 Memorial Stadium 48,678 Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Standings
Playoffs
The team made it to the playoffs as a No. 3 seed and traveled to Pittsburgh to play the Steelers in the divisional round. Tied at seven at the half, Pittsburgh outscored the Colts 21–3 in the second half. The Steelers defense forced four turnovers and held the Colts to 154 total yards of offense in their 28–10 win.
Round Date Opponent (seed) Result Record Venue Recap Divisional December 27 at Pittsburgh Steelers (1) L 10–28 Three Rivers Stadium 49,053 Recap
Awards and honors Sporting News Executive of the Year: Joe Thomas AP Coach of the Year, PFW Coach of the Year, Sporting News Coach of the Year, UPI AFC Coach of the Year: Ted Marchibroda
See also History of the Indianapolis Colts Indianapolis Colts seasons Colts–Patriots rivalry
References
External links 1975 Baltimore Colts at Pro-Football-Reference.com 1975 Baltimore Colts at JT-SW.com