History
Baltimore had hoped to get a franchise in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) when it began operations in 1946, but there were problems getting a stadium lease, so plans fell through.
Shortly before the 1947 season, the AAFC awarded Baltimore the franchise that had formerly belonged to the Miami Seahawks. The new team was named the Colts through a fan contest. The original owner was Robert Ridgway Rodenberg.
The Colts won their first game, 16-7 over the Brooklyn Dodgers, but they had only one more victory the rest of the 1948 season. Attendance was under 200,000 and the team's finances also suffered because of a $150,000 payment to George Preston Marshall for infringing on the territorial rights of his team, the Washington Redskins.
In 1948, the Colts were reorganized as a community-owned team. More than 200 people bought stock at $1 a share, with a minimum purchase of 100 shares per person. The team improved on the field, going 7-7 to tie the Buffalo Bills for first place in the Eastern Conference, but they lost the playoff game, 28-17, at home.
From there on, it was all downhill. The Colts went 1-11 in 1949, the AAFC's final year. In a “merger” with the National Football League, three teams were accepted into the NFL: the Cleveland Browns, the San Francisco 49ers, and the Colts.
However, another 1-11 finish in 1950 doomed this first Baltimore franchise. President Abe Watner gave the franchise back to the NFL, receiving $50,000 in exchange for the players, who went to other teams in a dispersal draft.