Is there a Baltimore fan alive
who’s forgotten Tom Matte in ’65?
The Colts by crippling injuries vexed,
Unitas first and Cuozzo next–
What would become of the pass attack?
Then Matte stepped in at quarterback.
He beat the Rams in a great display,
He did – and he damn near beat Green Bay.
Ask him today to plunge or block,
Tom’s the man who can roll or rock.
In Tokyo, they say karate
In Baltimore, they call it Matte
By Ogden Nash
Baltimore vs. Green Bay is etched in the lore of the football gods. And no, I’m not talking about the standout performance from this past Monday Night. Stay with me for awhile. The following will bring back to life, if only for a few moments, a Baltimore football classic from a different day, a different genre.
Imagine a NFL team going into a playoff game without a passing attack. Imagine a defensive coordinator who must only plan against a third-string quarterback (who really plays halfback) who doesn’t know the plays, and places his team at a disadvantage the moment he attempts a forward pass. The adversary calls it lady luck. The professional calls it an opportunity.
Minus their first and second string quarterbacks, Johnny Unitas and Gary Cuozzo, the 1965 Baltimore Colts forced a playoff game with their arch-rival Green Bay Packers to determine the Western Division champion, by defeating the Los Angeles Rams in their final regular season game. The Packers, who tied San Francisco in their regular season finale, thus forcing the playoff game, won Commissioner Pete Rozelle’s coin toss to host the game at Lambeau Field.
Since John Unitas took over the Colts offensive reigns in 1956 they were always a pass-first, run-second offense. Now, with halfback-turned-quarterback Tom Matte as quarterback (who used a plastic wristband to help him with the plays), their makeshift offensive philosophy was reversed. Colts head coach Don Shula would call ninety percent of the plays and devised a game plan to utilize the versatile Matte’s strengths, de-emphasizing a passing attack.
For the Colts to win, they needed to control the ball, minimize mistakes, and play to a low-scoring game. The ingredients required to win a championship today– turnovers, big plays, opportunistic defense, heart, and lady luck—would all play a large part on that cold, December day in Green Bay.
December 26, 1965, Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
The Colts Lou Michaels kicked off and Herb Adderley, six yards deep in the end zone, returned it twenty yards to the 16-yard line. The Pack, perhaps tense, was offsides on the kick but the Colts refused the penalty, negating the need to kick over. On the first play from scrimmage Packers QB Bart Starr connected with back up tight end Bill Anderson for a ten-yard gain. When hit by Colt defender Lenny Lyles, Anderson coughed up the ball as it squirmed towards the sidelines.
Then, in what seemed like slow motion, linebacker Don Shinnick rumbled over, scooped up the loose ball and thundered down the sideline–running over Starr in the process–for a touchdown! During the play Colt defensive back Jimmy Welch blocked Starr so hard that the Packers QB was helped off the field, and out of commission the rest of the day.
On their next series Packers running back Paul Hornung fumbled and Lyles recovered at the 50. The Colts blew a great opportunity, however, as RB Lenny Moore fumbled the ball back to the Packers at midfield. The Colts defense held and a 47-yard field Don Chandler goal attempt was wide to the right. In the first quarter neither the Colts Tom Matte, nor Starr’s replacement, Zeke Bratkowski, could get anything going. Bratkowski saw many perfect passes dropped as the Packers continued to play tight.
The second quarter found Hornung on the receiving end of as 47-yard Bratkowski pass, only to have it nullified by ineligible receiver downfield penalty. The Colts capitalized on this break by starting a drive from their 25 and, operating strictly a running game, Matte using fullback Jerry Hill as the battering ram who occasionally took the ball himself. A basketball-type screen pass to Moore good for ten yards was the only throw of the drive. Helped by a 15-yard penalty for a late hit when Packer defensive end Willie Davis kneed Matte, the Colts settled for a 15-yard field goal for a 10-0 Colts lead.
Shortly thereafter, fans were treated to the most fabulous Colts goal line stand in their history. A pass interference call against the Colts Jerry Logan put the ball on the Baltimore 9. After another pass put the ball on the Colts 1, Green Bay attempted three straight smashes at the line with defensive end Lou Michaels and linebacker Dennis Gaubatz making the final tackle on FB Jim Taylor.
Baltimore took over possession and Matte, protecting his ten-point lead, rushed five straight times to run out the clock at halftime.
Next came the first of three huge breaks for the Packers. Early in the second half the Colts were forced to punt. Center Buzz Nutter’s snap back to punter Tom Gilburg was high, forcing him to leap. Not having time to catch, turn and punt the ball Gilburg tried to run it out and was tackled on the Colt 35.
Bratkowski took over and hit Carroll Dale for a 33-yard catch to the Colts 1. Two plays later Hornung scored, cutting the lead to 10-7.
For Baltimore it became a game of punt and hold, as cornerback Bobby Boyd picked off a Bratkowski pass to stop one Packer drive. Starting the fourth period Jerry Logan intercepted another pass to stop a Green Bay drive on the Baltimore 20.
The Colts defense was wearing down, and Green Bay’s good luck was soon to turn in its favor.
On first and ten, and time running out, Bratkowski dropped back to pass when Colts lineman Billy Ray Smith zoomed in and felled the quarterback with a chop to his helmet with a swinging forearm. Instead of an 8-yard loss, a personal foul gave Green Bay a first down on the Baltimore 43. According to an unrepentant Smith, “I hit him with a swipe of my right arm on his helmet and the official called me for a personal foul.” Since the current rules to protect the quarterback didn’t exist back then, Smith’s recall after the game is all the more old school: “I never heard of such a decision. What I am I supposed to do? Let him pass? He still had the ball when I hit his helmet.”
From there in little time, the Packers got into field goal range. With 1:58 left in the game, Don Chandler attempted a field goal from the 22. With the injured Starr holding, Chandler kicked the ball high but it made a slicing right turn, seemingly over the right goal post. Chandler immediately turned and kicked the dirt in disgust knowing the ball was off the mark. Situated directly underneath the goalpost field judge Jim Tunney raised his arms “good”. Colts Fred Miller and Lou Michaels were irate, protesting the call to the nearest official. But Referee Norm Schacter had also ruled “good” despite his vantage point from behind the kicker.
After coming to the sidelines Packers head coach Vince Lombardi laid into Chandler admonishing him for showing emotion, which could possibly influence a referee’s call. Slow-motion replays of the game film proved that the tying kick was wide right. A frame-by-frame photo sequence printed in the Baltimore newspapers provided further evidence. Packer fans in the end zone, including the city editor of the Green Bay Press-Gazette, said they were shocked that the kick had been ruled good. Absent instant replay the game was now tied 10-10, and the first sudden-death overtime period in playoff history began.
The Packers won the overtime coin toss and elected to receive. The Packers punted twice to the Colts once in overtime, with the Colts taking over on their own 41. Matte ran three times to the 38, then lost 2 to the 40. Michaels came on to attempt a 47-yard field goal for the win. A low snap from Nutter was handled deftly by holder Bobby Boyd, but Michaels kick fell short. That proved to be the dying effort by the Colts as the Packers crunched from their 20 to the Colts 18 in 9 plays, bringing on Chandler for the game winning 25-yard field goal try. Chandler’s kick was down the middle for a 13-10 victory, and the beaten-up Packers would face Cleveland for the NFL Championship.
The Packers controlled the offensive statistics, including the one that mattered, but a blown call by the refs denied the Colts their rightful rematch with Cleveland. Bratkowski, in relief, was 22-38 for 248 yards with two interceptions. Matte passing was 5-12 for 40 yards and 0 picks. The Colts managed to grind out 143 yards on the ground to Green Bay’s 112, with Matte carrying 17 times and fullback Hill 16.
Not coincidentally, the next season the NFL decided to place two officials under the goal posts and raise the uprights another ten feet–becoming known as the “Baltimore Extensions.” After the game a classy Matte said, “The Packers have a great team and we have nothing to be ashamed of going out of here. There were a couple of hairy calls by the officials in the fourth period, but you can’t blame the loss on that.”
Although Matte’s wristband made it into the Hall of Fame, the Colts of 1965 are nothing more than a fading memory to most. It’s a game that changed the NFL for the better, but that was certainly no consolation prize for Colts fans.
Green Bay went on to beat Cleveland for their first of three straight NFL championships (the last two were Super Bowl’s I & II). However, that record is forever blemished. Thus, Baltimore fans had to endure their second straight year of heartbreak.
The years 1966-68 also had their heartbreak moments, but that is another story for another (sigh) day.
