The1972Baltimore Coltsseason was the 20th season for the team in theNational Football League. They finished with 5 wins and 9 losses, third in theAFC East.

Robert Irsay, who had recently taken overthe Los Angeles Rams, traded ownership of the NFL franchises with Colts' ownerCarroll Rosenbloom, with players and coaching staffs remaining intact.^[1][2][3] Rosenbloom had previously wanted to move the Colts toTampa, but was turned down by the league.^[4]

However, the Colts were getting older and started 1–4 before third-year head coachDon McCafferty was fired by new general managerJoe Thomas.^[5][6][7][8] In their final nine games under interim head coachJohn Sandusky, Baltimore won four to finish at 5–9,^[9] their first losing mark insixteen seasons. The entire coaching staff was let go after the season concluded.^[10][11][12]

• July 13, 1972 —Robert Irsay boughtthe Los Angeles Rams and transferred ownership toCarroll Rosenbloom, in exchange for ownership of the Colts.^{[1][2][3][13]}

^[14]

The season began ominously for the Colts when they were defeated at home on opening day bythe St. Louis Cardinals and their journeyman quarterback,Tim Van Galder. In week two,Johnny Unitas threw for 376 yards and three touchdowns, but it was far from enough asJoe Namath threw for 496 yards and six touchdowns to powerthe New York Jets to a 44–34 victory at Memorial Stadium, the Jets' first victory over the Colts sinceSuper Bowl III.

In October, the Colts' season reached its nadir when it was shut out twice at home in a three-week stretch bythe Dallas Cowboys, who undoubtedly wanted revenge for their loss to Baltimore inSuper Bowl V, andthe Miami Dolphins, who were on their way to a 17–0 season and their first Super Bowl championship under former Colts coachDon Shula.

Unitas, age 39, made his final appearance in Baltimore in the fourth quarter of a 35–7 victory overBuffalo on December 3, and threw a 63-yard completion for his 287th career touchdown pass.^[15][16] Two weeks later, he played his final game as a Colt, with a completion and an interception.^[9]

For the third consecutive year, the Colts played their season finale atthe Orange Bowl inMiami. Only this time, it was not in the postseason, but a humbling 16–0 shutout to the Dolphins in Week 14 in a game which was nowhere near as close as the final score.^[9] Baltimore endedthe 1970 season with a win over the Cowboys inSuper Bowl V, and endedthe 1971 season with a loss to the Dolphins in the AFC Championship game.

• History of the Indianapolis Colts
• Indianapolis Colts seasons
• Colts–Patriots rivalry

• "The 1972 Baltimore Colts," Baltimore Football Inc. via YouTube.com, Dec. 24, 2021.(Video.)

• 1972 NFL season by team
• Baltimore Colts seasons
• 1972 in sports in Maryland

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