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1974 Baltimore Colts season

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1974 Baltimore Colts season
OwnerRobert Irsay
General managerJoe Thomas
Head coachHoward Schnellenberger
Joe Thomas
Home fieldMemorial Stadium
Results
Record2–12
Division place5th AFC East
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro BowlersLB Mike Curtis

The 1974 Baltimore Colts season was the 22nd season for the team in the National Football League. The Colts finished with a record of 2 wins and 12 losses, fifth in the AFC East.

Second-year head coach Howard Schnellenberger was fired after three games,[1] after an argument with owner Robert Irsay over whether Marty Domres or Bert Jones should start at quarterback for the Colts.[2]

General manager Joe Thomas took over the head coaching duties for the remainders of the season, but could direct the team to only two wins, both on the road, as the Colts failed to win a home game during the 1974 season. This would be the last time the Colts would fail to win a home game in a non-strike season until their abysmal 1–15 1991 season, when the team was based in Indianapolis.

Offseason

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NFL Draft

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Main article: 1974 NFL Draft
1974 Baltimore Colts draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 5 John Dutton *  Defensive end LSU
1 24 Roger Carr *  Wide receiver Louisiana Tech
2 32 Fred Cook  Defensive end Southern Miss
3 57 Glenn Robinson  Linebacker Oklahoma State
3 67 Robert Pratt  Guard North Carolina
4 84 Tony Bell  Defensive back Bowling Green
5 129 Doug Nettles  Defensive back Vanderbilt
6 140 Danny Rhodes  Linebacker Arkansas
7 161 Noah Jackson  Guard Tampa
7 170 Dan Dickel  Linebacker Iowa
7 174 Freddie Scott  Wide receiver Amherst
8 188 Greg Latta  Tight end Morgan State
8 198 Paul Miles  Running back Bowling Green
10 240 Bob Van Duyne  Guard Idaho
10 257 Glenn Ellis  Defensive tackle Elon
11 265 Tim Rudnick  Defensive back Notre Dame
12 292 Dave Simonson  Tackle Minnesota
12 307 Bob Bobrowski  Quarterback Purdue
13 317 Randy Hall  Defensive back Idaho
14 344 Ed Collins  Wide receiver Rice
15 369 Pat Kelly  Linebacker Richmond
16 396 Dave Margavage  Tackle Kentucky
17 421 Tim Berra  Wide receiver UMass
17 436 Buzzy Lewis  Defensive back Florida State
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Staff

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1974 Baltimore Colts staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches




Final roster

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1974 Baltimore Colts roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams


Rookies in italics

Regular season

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Main article: 1974 NFL season

All-Pro linebacker Ted Hendricks signed a future contract with the World Football League, and was then traded by the Colts to the Green Bay Packers by general manager Joe Thomas. (Hendricks never ended up playing for the bankrupt WFL, and made four more Pro Bowls in his career.)

In an autopsy of the Colts 1974 season written for Street & Smith's Pro Football Annual, Buffalo Evening News writer Larry Felser observed that the patience of Baltimore fans was waning, with the perennially sold-out Memorial Stadium had failed to crack the 40,000 mark at the gate on multiple occasions.[3] "When Joe Thomas arrived on the scene as general manager in 1972, he promised to tear down a decaying team and rebuild it into a champion," Felser wrote. "He produced on the first part of his vow; the Baltimore fans are waiting for the other shoe to drop."[3]

Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Game Recap
1 September 15 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 0–30 0–1 Three Rivers Stadium 48,890 Recap
2 September 22 Green Bay Packers L 13–20 0–2 Memorial Stadium 41,252 Recap
3 September 29 at Philadelphia Eagles L 10–30 0–3 Veterans Stadium 64,205 Recap
4 October 6 at New England Patriots L 3–42 0–4 Schaefer Stadium 59,502 Recap
5 October 13 Buffalo Bills L 14–27 0–5 Memorial Stadium 40,626 Recap
6 October 20 at New York Jets W 35–20 1–5 Shea Stadium 51,745 Recap
7 October 27 at Miami Dolphins L 7–17 1–6 Orange Bowl 65,868 Recap
8 November 3 Cincinnati Bengals L 14–24 1–7 Memorial Stadium 36,110 Recap
9 November 10 Denver Broncos L 6–17 1–8 Memorial Stadium 33,244 Recap
10 November 17 at Atlanta Falcons W 17–7 2–8 Atlanta Stadium 41,278 Recap
11 November 24 New England Patriots L 17–27 2–9 Memorial Stadium 34,782 Recap
12 December 1 at Buffalo Bills L 0–6 2–10 Rich Stadium 75,325 Recap
13 December 8 Miami Dolphins L 16–17 2–11 Memorial Stadium 34,420 Recap
14 December 15 New York Jets L 38–45 2–12 Memorial Stadium 31,651 Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

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AFC East
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Miami Dolphins 11 3 0 .786 6–2 9–2 327 216 W3
Buffalo Bills 9 5 0 .643 5–3 7–4 264 244 L2
New York Jets 7 7 0 .500 4–4 5–6 279 300 W6
New England Patriots 7 7 0 .500 4–4 4–7 348 289 L3
Baltimore Colts 2 12 0 .143 1–7 1–10 190 329 L4
AFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Pittsburgh Steelers 10 3 1 .750 4–2 7–3–1 305 189 W2
Houston Oilers 7 7 0 .500 4–2 7–4 236 282 W1
Cincinnati Bengals 7 7 0 .500 3–3 5–6 283 259 L3
Cleveland Browns 4 10 0 .286 1–5 3–8 251 344 L2
AFC West
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Oakland Raiders 12 2 0 .857 5–1 9–2 355 228 W3
Denver Broncos 7 6 1 .536 3–3 5–4–1 302 294 L1
Kansas City Chiefs 5 9 0 .357 2–4 4–7 233 293 L2
San Diego Chargers 5 9 0 .357 2–4 4–7 212 285 W2
Source:[4]

Season summary

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Week 2 vs Packers

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Week Two: Green Bay Packers (0–1) at Baltimore Colts (0–1)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Packers 3 10 7020
Colts 3 3 0713

at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland

  • Date: September 22
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: 61 °F (16 °C)
  • Game attendance: 41,252
  • Box Score
Game information

References

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  1. ^ "Schnellenberger the last to know". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. September 30, 1974. p. 1C.
  2. ^ Neft, David S.; Cohen, Richard M.; and Korch, Rich The Sports Encyclopedia: Pro Football, 12th Edition, p. 270, Martin's Press, August 1994, ISBN 0-312-11073-1
  3. ^ a b Larry Felser, "Baltimore Colts," in Sam E. Andre (ed.), Street & Smith's Pro Football Annual, 1975. New York: Conde Nast Publications, 1975, pp. 48–50.
  4. ^ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 296

See also

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