1986 Indianapolis Colts season

Indianapolis Colts
1986 Indianapolis Colts season
Owner	Robert Irsay
Head coach	Rod Dowhower; Ron Meyer
General manager	Jim Irsay
Home field	Hoosier Dome
Results
Record	3–13
Division place	5th AFC East
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	3 C Ray Donaldson; T Chris Hinton; P Rohn Stark;

The 1986 Indianapolis Colts season was the 34th season for the team in the National Football League (NFL) and third in Indianapolis. The team finished the year with a record of 3 wins and 13 losses, and fifth in the AFC East division.

The 1986 Colts were the last team until the 2007 Miami Dolphins to lose their first thirteen games in a season. Head Coach Rod Dowhower was fired with three games left in the season and was replaced by Ron Meyer. It appeared that the Colts could be on their way to the NFL’s first anti-perfect season since the 1976 Buccaneers, and indeed there were many critics who argued that Colts wanted to go 0–16 to gain hot college quarterback prospect Vinny Testaverde,[1] despite some fears Testaverde – like John Elway – would refuse to play for the team.[2]

However, at 0–13, the Colts defeated the Atlanta Falcons 28–23 in Week 14, by returning a blocked punt for a touchdown.[3] They then won their last two games, to finish with three wins on the season. The Colts are the only team in NFL history to win the remainder of their games after starting winless.

Personnel

Staff

**1986 Indianapolis Colts staff**

	Front office President and Treasurer – Robert Irsay Vice President and General Manager – Jim Irsay Assistant General Manager – Bob Terpening Director of Player Personnel – Jack Bushofsky Director of Pro Personnel – Clyde Powers Head coaches Head Coach – Rod Dowhower/Ron Meyer Assistant Head Coach – Tom Lovat Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator/Running Backs – Billie Matthews Quarterbacks – John Becker Receivers – Chip Myers Offensive Line – Tom Lovat Assistant Offensive Line – Keith Rowen			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – George Hill Defensive Line – John Marshall Linebackers – Rick Venturi Secondary – George Catavolos Special teams coaches Special Teams – Keith Rowen Strength and conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Tom Zupancic

Roster

**1986 Indianapolis Colts roster**

	Quarterbacks 10 Jack Trudeau 7 Gary Hogeboom 5 Blair Kiel Running backs 34 George Wonsley 20 Albert Bentley 32 Randy McMillan 44 Owen Gill 30 Hubie Oliver Wide receivers 80 Bill Brooks 85 Matt Bouza 87 Wayne Capers 88 James Harbour 86 Oliver Williams 86 Walter Murray 88 Robbie Martin Tight ends 81 Pat Beach 84 Mark Boyer 83 Tim Sherwin 83 Greg LaFleur		Offensive linemen 72 Karl Baldischwiler T 53 Ray Donaldson C 75 Chris Hinton T 64 Ben Utt G 66 Ron Solt G 63 Mark Kirchner G 74 Roger Caron T 74 Bob Brotzki T Defensive linemen 99 Donnell Thompson DE 78 Jon Hand DE 79 Harvey Armstrong NT 90 John Haines DE/NT 94 Scott Kellar NT 68 Willie Broughton NT		Linebackers 59 Orlando Lowry 50 Duane Bickett OLB 55 Barry Krauss 93 Cliff Odom ILB 98 Johnie Cooks OLB 57 Dave Ahrens ILB 56 Lamonte Hunley 58 Glen Redd 92 Jeff Leiding Defensive backs 29 Dwight Hicks FS 38 Eugene Daniel CB 25 Nesby Glasgow SS 31 Leonard Coleman CB 21 John Holt 45 Tommy Sims 35 Tate Randle FS 39 Victor Jackson 23 Kenny Daniel 27 Preston Davis 47 Dextor Clinkscale 26 Pat Ballage 28 Mike Lush Special teams 3 Rohn Stark P 4 Dean Biasucci K		Reserve lists -- Dameon Reilly WR (IR) Practice squad Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Game Site	Attendance
1	September 7, 1986	at New England Patriots	L 3–33	0–1	Sullivan Stadium	55,208
2	September 14, 1986	at Miami Dolphins	L 10–30	0–2	Miami Orange Bowl	51,848
3	September 21, 1986	Los Angeles Rams	L 7–24	0–3	Hoosier Dome	59,012
4	September 28, 1986	New York Jets	L 7–26	0–4	Hoosier Dome	56,075
5	October 5, 1986	at San Francisco 49ers	L 14–35	0–5	Candlestick Park	57,252
6	October 12, 1986	New Orleans Saints	L 14–17	0–6	Hoosier Dome	53,512
7	October 19, 1986	at Buffalo Bills	L 13–24	0–7	Rich Stadium	50,050
8	October 26, 1986	Miami Dolphins	L 13–17	0–8	Hoosier Dome	58,350
9	November 2, 1986	Cleveland Browns	L 9–24	0–9	Hoosier Dome	57,962
10	November 9, 1986	New England Patriots	L 21–30	0–10	Hoosier Dome	56,890
11	November 16, 1986	at New York Jets	L 16–31	0–11	The Meadowlands	65,149
12	November 23, 1986	at Houston Oilers	L 17–31	0–12	Astrodome	31,792
13	November 30, 1986	San Diego Chargers	L 3–17	0–13	Hoosier Dome	47,950
14	December 7, 1986	at Atlanta Falcons	W 28–23	1–13	Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium	30,397
15	December 14, 1986	Buffalo Bills	W 24–14	2–13	Hoosier Dome	52,783
16	December 21, 1986	at Los Angeles Raiders	W 30–24	3–13	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum	41,349

Standings

AFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
New England Patriots⁽³⁾	11	5	0	.688	7–1	8–4	412	307	W1
New York Jets⁽⁴⁾	10	6	0	.625	6–2	8–4	364	386	L5
Miami Dolphins	8	8	0	.500	5–3	6–6	430	405	L1
Buffalo Bills	4	12	0	.250	1–7	3–11	287	348	L3
Indianapolis Colts	3	13	0	.188	1–7	2–10	229	400	W3

References

Vierria, Dan; ‘Colts May Need a Win, but They Need Vinnie Even More’; Sacramento Bee, November 16, 1986, p. C4
Kaufman, Ira; ‘Will testaverde, like Elway, Spurn Colts’; Seattle Times, November 23, 1986, p. C5
Sheeley, Glenn; ‘Rope-a-dope: Falcon blunders give Indianapolis first victory’; Atlanta Constitution; December 8, 1986, p. D1

Indianapolis Colts
Founded in 1953 Played in Baltimore (1953–1983) Based and headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana
Franchise	History in Baltimore relocation to Indianapolis Players Quarterbacks Coaches Seasons Draft First-round draft picks Ring of Honor
Stadiums	Memorial Stadium RCA Dome Lucas Oil Stadium
Culture	Carroll Rosenbloom Robert Irsay Jim Irsay 12th Man AAFC Colts Baltimore Colts Marching Band The Band That Wouldn't Die Blue Cheerleaders Parks and Recreation
Lore	The Greatest Game Ever Played Ghost to the Post 1995 AFC Championship Game Immaculate Redemption/The Tackle Deflategate Colts Catastrophe Snow Bowl
Rivalries	Houston Texans New England Patriots Brady–Manning rivalry
Division championships (16)	1968 1970 1975 1976 1977 1987 1999 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2009 2010 2013 2014
Conference championships (7)	1958 1959 1964 1968 1970 2006 2009
League championships (5)	1958 1959 1968 1970 (V) 2006 (XLI)
Retired numbers	18 19 22 24 70 77 82 89
Media	Broadcasters WFNI-AM Bob Lamey Jim Sorgi
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: American Football Conference Division: South Division
Seasons (67)	1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Championship seasons in bold Category

Indianapolis Colts seasons
Played in Baltimore (1953–1983)
1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Bold indicates NFL Championship (1920–69) or Super Bowl (1966–present) victory Italics indicates NFL Championship (1920–69) or Super Bowl (1966–present) appearance