1965 Baltimore Colts season

13th season in franchise history; third place finish in NFL August 2023 March 2026 Baltimore Colts 1965 10–3–1 T-1st NFL Western (playoff) Carroll Rosenbloom Don "Red" Kellett Don Shula Memorial Stadium Lost Western Conference Playoff(at Packers) 10–13Won NFL Playoff Bowl(vs. Cowboys) 35–3 Colts seasons The 1965 Baltimore Colts season was the 13th season for the team in the National Football League. The Baltimore Colts finished the National Football League's 1965 season with a record of 10 wins, 3 losses, and 1 tie, which tied for first in the Western Conference with the Green Bay Packers. No tie-breaking system was in place, and a playoff game was required to determine the Western Conference champion, who would host the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Browns for the NFL title. The Colts were victims of the alleged Sports Illustrated cover jinx after linebacker Dennis Gaubatz was featured in late November. According to the article on the team's defense, the 9–1 Colts would soon clinch the Western title.https://www.si.com/vault/1965/11/29/612644/heroes-without-any-headlines Sports Illustrated Maule Tex Tex Maule Heroes without headlines November 29, 1965 30 But the team was beset with numerous obstacles from that point on, not the least of which were serious injuries to both of their quarterbacks, future Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas and back-up Gary Cuozzo. After it was ruled that veteran free agent Ed Brown had been acquired too late for inclusion on the postseason roster, halfback Tom Matte (who had played quarterback at Ohio State for Woody Hayes) was pressed into service behind center. Yet the Colts were a remarkably resilient bunch, and if not for a blown call in the playoff game, they would have advanced to the league championship game, which they would have hosted at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Offseason NFL draft 1965 NFL draft 1965 Baltimore Colts 1 14 Mike Curtis Linebacker Duke yes yes yes no Undrafted free agents + 1965 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeJim MurphyQuarterbackAir Force Personnel Staff/coaches 1965 Baltimore Colts staff Front office Owner/president – Carroll Rosenbloom Vice president/general manager – Red Kellett 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 – Charley Winner Linebackers coach – Don Shula Roster 1965 Baltimore Colts 14 Ed Brown quarterback P 32 Mike Curtis American football y 45 Jerry Hill American football 33 Tony Lorick 41 Tom Matte QB 24 Lenny Moore 82 Raymond Berry 25 Alex Hawkins 28 Jimmy Orr 87 Willie Richardson 84 Neal Petties 88 John Mackey American football 86 Butch Wilson 50 Buzz Nutter C 77 Jim Parker American football G 60 George Preas T 62 Glenn Ressler y G/C 68 Alex Sandusky G 71 Dan Sullivan American football T 52 Dick Szymanski C 72 Bob Vogel T 81 Ordell Braase DE 85 Roy Hilton y DE 75 Lou MichaelsDE/K 76 Fred Miller defensive lineman DT 74 Billy Ray Smith Sr. DT 75 Guy Reese DT 35 American football Ted Davis OLB 53 Dennis Gaubatz MLB 67 Monte Lee American football OLB 66 Don Shinnick OLB 31 Steve Stonebreaker OLB 51 Mike Strofolino y MLB 40 Bobby Boyd CB 30 Alvin Haymond CB 20 Jerry Logan SS 43 Lenny Lyles CB 26 Wendell Harris FS 46 Jim Welch FS 73 Tom Gilburg P 55 Jackie Burkett LB IR 15 Gary Cuozzo QB IR 61 Lou Kirouac T IR 19 Johnny Unitas QB IR 42 George Harold y CB 80 Al Snyder no WR Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 19 Minnesota Vikings W 35–16 1–0 Memorial Stadium 56,562 2 September 26 at Green Bay Packers L 17–20 1–1 Milwaukee County Stadium 48,130 3 October 3 San Francisco 49ers W 27–24 2–1 Memorial Stadium 58,609 4 October 10 Detroit Lions W 31–7 3–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 5 October 17 at Washington Redskins W 38–7 4–1 D.C. Stadium 50,405 6 October 24 Los Angeles Rams W 35–20 5–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 7 October 31 at San Francisco 49ers W 34–28 6–1 Kezar Stadium 45,827 8 November 7 at Chicago Bears W 26–21 7–1 Wrigley Field 45,656 9 November 14 at Minnesota Vikings W 41–21 8–1 Metropolitan Stadium 47,426 10 November 21 Philadelphia Eagles W 34–24 9–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 11 November 25 at Detroit Lions T 24–24 9–1–1 Tiger Stadium 55,036 12 December 5 Chicago Bears L 0–13 9–2–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 13 December 12 Green Bay Packers L 27–42 9–3–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238 14 December 18, 1965 at Los Angeles Rams W 20–17 10–3–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 46,636 Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text. Standings Postseason The Western Conference playoff game was played at Lambeau Field in Green Bay the day after Christmas and the Colts led the Packers 10–0 at halftime. The Packers, with back-up quarterback Zeke Bratkowski in for injured Bart Starr, tied it up late in the fourth quarter on Don Chandler's controversial 22-yard field goal. Video replays appeared to show the kicked ball sailed well wide of the right upright—and the reaction of Chandler confirmed as much. The kick resulted in 1) a re-design of the goalposts, and 2) changing the placement of an official directly under each upright on field-goal attempts for the 1966 season. Despite evidence to the contrary, the official in question, Jim Tunney (later known as "Dean of NFL Referees"), refused to admit his mistake, claiming that the flight of the ball over the goalpost had been affected by the wind before it veered to the right. The Packers won the game 13–10 in overtime with a 25-yard field goal. The following week the Packers defeated the Cleveland Browns for the NFL title, their third of five under head coach Vince Lombardi and first of three straight. Round Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap Conference December 26 at Green Bay Packers L 10–13 (OT) Lambeau Field 50,484 Recap Playoff Bowl January 9, 1966 Dallas Cowboys W 35–3 Orange Bowl 65,569 - See also History of the Baltimore Colts Indianapolis Colts seasons 1965 NFL playoffs References External links 1965 Baltimore Colts at Pro-Football-Reference.com 1965 Baltimore Colts at JT-SW.com Chuck Thompson (narrator), Colts: 1965 Season: "One For the Book", YouTube.com, Nov. 22, 2022 (Video.) Baltimore Colts Category:Baltimore Colts seasons Baltimore Colts Category:1960s in Baltimore