The 1968 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' record was 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 1967; the other three teams in the NFL postseason, all division winners, had nine wins each.
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.[1] 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.
We offer a beautiful Spalding 388 white and black striped Official Size and weight Keith Lincoln endorsed football (Lincoln played professional football from 1961-68 and was a 5 X All-Star). Signed in blue ballpoint ink by 32 members of the 1968 Baltimore Colts.
Features: Johnny Unitas, Earl Morrall, Ordell Braase, Dick Syzmanski, Rick Volk, Willie Richardson, Jerry Logan, Dan Sullivan, Dennis Gaubatz, Glenn Ressler, David Lee, Roy Hilton, John Mackey, Bob Boyd, Lou Michaels, John Williams, Lenny Lyles, Bubba Smith, Timmy Brown (was only in Baltimore in 1968), Bob Vogel, Tom Matte, Fred Miller, Jimmy Orr, Ray Perkins, Mike Curtis, and Billy Ray Smith
Ball and signatures are even nicer than photos show. Autographs average 8 – 9 out of 10.
Item: 13217
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