The Baltimore Colts season was the 16th season for the team in the National Football League (NFL). Led by sixth-year head coach Don Shula, they finished the regular season with a record of 13 wins and 1 loss, and won the Western Conference's Coastal division.
The previous season, the Colts finished 11–1–2, tied for the best in the league, but were excluded from the playoffs. They lost a tiebreaker with the Los Angeles Rams for the Coastal Division title in ; the other three teams in the NFL postseason, all division winners, had nine wins each.
The Colts finished the 1968 regular season with the team's defense having allowed just 144 points — tying the NFL record for a 14-game season."Baltimore Colts" in Al Silverman (ed.), Pro Football Almanac, 1969. New York: McFadden-Bartell Corp., 1969, pp. 60-61.
In 1968, Baltimore won the Western Conference playoff game with the Minnesota Vikings and the NFL Championship Game in a shutout of the Cleveland Browns, but then lost to the New York Jets of the American Football League in Super Bowl III. Hall of Fame quarterback Johnny Unitas had been injured during the pre-season, so Earl Morrall led the offense. He would finish the season as the league leader in touchdown passes with 26. Shula decided to bring Unitas back in during the second half of the Super Bowl, to no avail.
After the upset, instead of championship rings, luxury watches were given to the team as a consolation prize to commemorate their NFL Championship victory over Cleveland.
Offseason NFL draft
Round Pick Player Position School/Club team123John WilliamsOffensive tackleMinnesota250Bob GrantLinebackerWake Forest378Rich O'HaraWide receiverNorthern Arizona4107Jim DuncanRunning backMaryland-Eastern Shore5126Paul ElzeyLinebackerToledo7188Anthony AndrewsRunning back Hampton8216Tommy DavisGuardTennessee State9242Terry ColeRunning backIndiana10257Ocie AustinFree safetyUtah State10270Ed TomlinRunning backHampton11296Bill PickensGuardHouston12324James Jackson Offensive tackleJackson State13350Howard TennebarOffensive tackleKent State14378Charles MitchellTight endAlabama State15404Jeff BeaverQuarterbackNorth Carolina16432Walt BlackledgeWide receiverSan Jose State17458Roy PedersonLinebackerState College of Iowa
Undrafted free agents
+ 1968 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeJohnny MataLinebackerNorth Texas State
Personnel Staff/Coaches 1968 Baltimore Colts staff Front office Owner/president and treasurer – Carroll Rosenbloom General manager – Harry Hulmes
Coaching staff Head coach – Don Shula Offensive coaches Receivers/offensive ends – Dick Bielski Offensive backs – Don McCafferty Offensive line coach – John Sandusky Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator/defensive line – Bill Arnsparger Defensive backfield – Chuck Noll Linebackers coach – Don Shula
Roster
Regular season
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 15 San Francisco 49ers W 27–10 1–0 Memorial Stadium 56,864 2 September 22 at Atlanta Falcons W 28–20 2–0 Atlanta Stadium 50,428 3 September 29 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 41–7 3–0 Pitt Stadium 44,480 4 October 6 Chicago Bears W 28–7 4–0 Memorial Stadium 60,238 5 October 13 at San Francisco 49ers W 42–14 5–0 Kezar Stadium 32,822 6 October 20 Cleveland Browns L 20–30 5–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 7 October 27 Los Angeles Rams W 27–10 6–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 8 November 3 at New York Giants W 26–0 7–1 Yankee Stadium 62,973 9 November 10 at Detroit Lions W 27–10 8–1 Tiger Stadium 55,170 10 November 17 St. Louis Cardinals W 27–0 9–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 11 November 24 Minnesota Vikings W 21–9 10–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 12 December 1 Atlanta Falcons W 44–0 11–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 13 at Green Bay Packers W 16–3 12–1 Lambeau Field 50,861 14 December 15 at Los Angeles Rams W 28–24 13–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 69,397 Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries Week 11: vs. Minnesota Vikings
This would be the last occasion the Colts hosted the Vikings in the regular season until 2000 in Indianapolis. The intervening gap — following the playoff meeting between the same teams at the same venue — of 31 seasons constitutes the second-longest gap without one team visiting another in NFL history. Standings
Post-season The team made it to the playoffs as winners of the Coastal division and hosted the Minnesota Vikings of the Central division for the Western Conference title. The Colts took a 21–0 lead and went on to win 24–14. They then traveled to Cleveland to take on the Browns in the NFL Championship Game. Baltimore's only loss of the season came at home to the Browns in October, falling 20–30. In late December, the Colts defense was on top of their game as they shut out the Browns 34–0 to gain their third NFL title. The 1968 Colts were being touted as "the greatest football team in history."
In Super Bowl III, the Colts took on the heavy underdog New York Jets led by quarterback Joe Namath, with the Colts favored by points. Before the game, former NFL star and coach Norm Van Brocklin ridiculed the AFL, saying "This will be Namath's first professional football game." Three days before the game, Namath was being heckled in Miami and he responded by saying: "We’re going to win Sunday. I guarantee it." The Jets beat the Colts 16–7 in one of the biggest upsets in American sports history.
Perhaps the biggest effect of the Colts' loss is that the predominant sentiment that the AFL was not strong enough to merge with the NFL was firmly squelched.
Round Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Western Conference December 22 Minnesota Vikings W 24–14 1–0 Memorial Stadium 60,238 NFL Championship December 29 at Cleveland Browns W 34–0 2–0 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 80,628 Super Bowl III January 12, 1969 New York Jets L 7–16 2–1 Miami Orange Bowl 75,389
Conference Playoff: vs. Minnesota Vikings Following upon their last regular-season visit to the Colts for 32 years, the Vikings would visit the Colts for the last time in a competition game until 2000 in their first-ever postseason appearance.
Awards Earl Morrall: AP NFL MVP Don Shula: AP NFL Coach of the Year
See also Baltimore Colts List of Indianapolis Colts seasons Notes
References
External links 1968 Baltimore Colts at Pro-Football-Reference.com 1968 Baltimore Colts at JT-SW.com "1968 Baltimore Colts," Classic Sports via YouTube.com, Aug. 27, 2022 (Video.)