March 29, 1984. The day when Baltimore lost its football team to Indianapolis. That too, within a span of just hours. The image of Mayflower trucks scrambling across the state of Maryland, hoping to reach Indianapolis, is still fresh in the minds of many fans. However, many new fans would still be wondering, why did Robert Irsay move the Colts to Indianapolis overnight?
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The move was a result of a series of bad moves from the Baltimore city and Maryland state officials, eventually culminating in a move that many call “putting a gun to the Colts’ head”. Irsay was forced into making a decision, which if he had delayed, could have cost him the team. So, what did the state and city officials do that prompted Irsay to act so quickly?
On This Day in 1984: Baltimore #Colts owner Robert Irsay moved the team to Indianapolis in the dead of night.
The images of the Mayflower trucks leaving Baltimore are forever memorable. pic.twitter.com/GUwGtjvxne
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) March 28, 2023
Eminent Domain: The words that haunt Baltimore even today
The Colts used to share a stadium with the MLB team Orioles since 1953, and problems were rampant from the outset. For starters, the Memorial Stadium, as it was known, was inadequate on all fronts. However, Baltimore never really planned on improving the stadium but was happy about increasing the lease rate. This did not go down at all with the Colts, but there was not much they could do back then.
Enter Robert Irsay, who took control of the Colts by swapping ownership rights for the Rams with Carroll Rosenbloom. Irsay, who publicly admitted that he wanted to stay in Baltimore, started negotiations with other cities, including Phoenix and Indianapolis, in an effort to gain favorable terms if he moved there. The NFL too approved his request and gave him permission to shift to a different city if needed.
The State of Maryland, however, had other plans in mind. On March 27, 1984, the Maryland General Assembly passed a legislature that would effectively allow the city of Baltimore to take control of the Colts. All it needed was the House of Delegate’s approval and the Governor’s signature. When Irsay heard the news, he know he had to act quickly or lose his franchise forever.
What happened next is probably one of the biggest logistical undertakings in the history of the NFL. After securing a deal with the city of Indianapolis, Robert Irsay shifted all of the Colts’ equipment in 15 Mayflower trucks. This entire operation took place in the middle of the night/. Mostly, since almost everyone knew that Baltimore city would get permission to take over the franchise in the morning.
Baltimore was heartbroken when the Colts were driven out of their city
Fans of the Colts were dismayed to see their team leave their city. What was more enraging for them, was the fact that city and state officials drove them out with their plans. However, the thing that hurt them all the most, is the fact that they had lost the name “Colts”. Though, the move did end up prompting the city and state to start working on making their facilities better.
Perhaps no one can describe the Colts’ situation better, than their then-counsel Michael Chernoff. He said, “They not only threw down the gauntlet, but they put a gun to his (Robert Irsay) head and cocked it and asked, ‘Want to see if it’s loaded?’ They forced him to make a decision that day.”
It was truly one of the most historic nights for the NFL, as it paved the way for the creation of the Indianapolis Colts, as we know them today. For Baltimore, their suffering did not last long, as the city got its own team, the Ravens, in 1995. The Ravens won their first-ever Super Bowl in 2000, while the Colts had to wait 22 years to win the Super Bowl as a team from Indianapolis, thanks to Peyton Manning.
