The 1959 Baltimore Colts season was the seventh season for the team in the National Football League. The defending champion Baltimore Colts finished the NFL's 40th season with a record of 9 wins and 3 losses and finished first in the Western Conference, and defeated the New York Giants, 31–16 in the NFL championship game, which was the rematch of the previous season's classic title game, for their second consecutive NFL title.
| 1959 Baltimore Colts season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Carroll Rosenbloom |
| General manager | Don "Red" Kellett |
| Head coach | Weeb Ewbank |
| Home field | Memorial Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 9–3 |
| Division place | 1st NFL Western |
| Playoff finish | Won NFL Championship (vs. Giants) 31–16 |
Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas had one of the great seasons by a passer in NFL history. Says Cold Hard Football Facts, "[Unitas's] 32 scoring strikes was an NFL record — he was the first and only to top 30 [touchdowns] in the NFL's first 40 years — and remains the standard for a 12-game season. He was in the midst of his record 47-game streak with a touchdown pass, and connected on at least one in every game of 1959."[1] The team scored at least 21 points in all thirteen games played in the year.
Cold Hard Football Facts also notes that the 1959 Colts were the only team in NFL history to lead the league in both offensive and defensive (i.e. opponents') passer rating for two consecutive seasons (1958–1959).[2] Every other team to had ever led the league in both has won an NFL championship.
The Colts defeated the Green Bay Packers twice this season in Vince Lombardi's first year as head coach. Baltimore did not win the Western title again until 1964 and their next NFL title came in 1968.
Regular season
editSchedule
edit| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 27 | Detroit Lions | W 21–9 | 1–0 | Memorial Stadium | 55,588 | |
| 2 | October 3 | Chicago Bears | L 21–26 | 1–1 | Memorial Stadium | 57,557 | |
| 3 | October 11 | at Detroit Lions | W 31–24 | 2–1 | Tiger Stadium | 54,197 | |
| 4 | October 18 | at Chicago Bears | W 21–7 | 3–1 | Wrigley Field | 48,430 | |
| 5 | October 25 | Green Bay Packers | W 38–21 | 4–1 | Memorial Stadium | 57,557 | |
| 6 | November 1 | Cleveland Browns | L 31–38 | 4–2 | Memorial Stadium | 57,557 | |
| 7 | November 8 | at Washington Redskins | L 24–27 | 4–3 | Griffith Stadium | 32,773 | |
| 8 | November 15 | at Green Bay Packers | W 28–24 | 5–3 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 25,521 | |
| 9 | November 22 | San Francisco 49ers | W 45–14 | 6–3 | Memorial Stadium | 57,557 | |
| 10 | November 29 | Los Angeles Rams | W 35–21 | 7–3 | Memorial Stadium | 57,557 | |
| 11 | December 5 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 34–14 | 8–3 | Kezar Stadium | 59,075 | |
| 12 | December 12 | at Los Angeles Rams | W 45–26 | 9–3 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 65,528 | |
| Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text. | |||||||
Standings
edit| NFL Western Conference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK | ||
| Baltimore Colts | 9 | 3 | 0 | .750 | 9–1 | 374 | 251 | W5 | |
| Chicago Bears | 8 | 4 | 0 | .667 | 6–4 | 252 | 196 | W7 | |
| San Francisco 49ers | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | 5–5 | 255 | 237 | L2 | |
| Green Bay Packers | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | 6–4 | 248 | 246 | W4 | |
| Detroit Lions | 3 | 8 | 1 | .273 | 2–8 | 203 | 275 | L1 | |
| Los Angeles Rams | 2 | 10 | 0 | .167 | 2–8 | 242 | 315 | L8 | |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
| NFL Eastern Conference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK | ||
| New York Giants | 10 | 2 | 0 | .833 | 8–2 | 284 | 170 | W4 | |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | 6–4 | 268 | 278 | L1 | |
| Cleveland Browns | 7 | 5 | 0 | .583 | 6–4 | 270 | 214 | W1 | |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 6 | 5 | 1 | .545 | 6–4 | 257 | 216 | W1 | |
| Washington Redskins | 3 | 9 | 0 | .250 | 2–8 | 185 | 350 | L5 | |
| Chicago Cardinals | 2 | 10 | 0 | .167 | 2–8 | 234 | 324 | L6 | |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Postseason
editThe 1959 NFL championship game was played on December 27 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. The game was a rematch of the previous year's title game that went into overtime. The 1959 game was the 27th annual NFL championship game. The Colts beat the Giants 31–16, earning their second consecutive NFL championship over the Giants.
| Round | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Championship | December 27 | New York Giants | W 31–16 | 1–0 | Memorial Stadium | 57,545 |
Awards and honors
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Cold Hard Football Facts: The Dandy Dozen: 12 best passing seasons in history". Archived from the original on July 29, 2012. Retrieved May 17, 2012.
- ^ "Cold Hard Football Facts: 40 and Fabulous: in praise of passer rating". Archived from the original on August 17, 2012. Retrieved August 24, 2012.
- ^ "Maxwell Football Club - Bert Bell Award Past Recipients". Archived from the original on June 19, 2009. Retrieved June 28, 2010.