The 1990 Indianapolis Colts season was the 38th season for the team in the National Football League and seventh in Indianapolis. The Indianapolis Colts finished the National Football League's 1990 season with a record of 7 wins and 9 losses, and finished third in the AFC East division. Running back Eric Dickerson held out of training camp, during a contract dispute. The Colts suspended Dickerson four games for conduct detrimental to the team. He returned late in the season and rushed for 677 yards.

The Colts were embarrassed at home in week two by the putrid Patriots, losing 16–14 for New England's lone win of 1990.

On December 22, 1990, Monday Night Football was played two days early, on Saturday night. The 6–8 Colts played at home as underdogs against the Washington Redskins. Trailing 25–14 in the 4th quarter, rookie quarterback Jeff George led an improbable and spectacular comeback which included two touchdowns to tie the game with little time left. The Colts then intercepted Mark Rypien and returned the ball for the go-ahead touchdown. The Colts pulled off the upset in dramatic fashion with one of George's most memorable games of his career. He threw three touchdowns and no interceptions.

Offseason

NFL draft

1990 Indianapolis Colts draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 1 Jeff George  Quarterback Illinois
2 36 Anthony Johnson  Running back Notre Dame
4 83 Stacey Simmons  Wide receiver Florida
4 94 Bill Schultz  Guard USC
4 103 Alan Grant  Cornerback Stanford
4 106 Rick Cunningham  Offensive tackle Texas A&M
6 148 Tony Walker  Linebacker Southeast Missouri State
7 179 James Singletary  Linebacker East Carolina
8 206 Ken Clark  Running back Nebraska
8 213 Harvey Wilson  Defensive back Southern
9 232 Darvell Huffman  Wide receiver Boston University
11 290 Carnel Smith  Defensive end Pittsburgh
12 311 Gene Benhart  Quarterback Western Illinois
12 316 Dean Brown  Guard Notre Dame
      Made roster  

Undrafted free agents

1990 undrafted free agents of note
Player Position College
Bill Ames Tight end Washington
Dale Amos Wide receiver Franklin & Marshall
Reggie Barnes Running back N. E. Oklahoma State
Tim Finkelston Wide receiver Virginia
Chad Fortune Tight End Louisville
Tim Freeman Tackle Penn State
Ricky Johnson Running back Maryland
Doug Lowery Defensive End DePauw
Dwayne O'Connor Tight End Purdue
Alfred Rawls Running back Kentucky
David Rider Cornerback-Safety New Mexico State
Eugene Riley Tight end Ball State
Ron Robinson Cornerback-Safety Kentucky
Tony Siragusa Defensive tackle Pittsburgh
Mike Teeter Defensive tackle Michigan
Matt Vanderbeek Defensive end Michigan State
Ron Vargo Center Indiana
Reggie Williams Wide receiver Pittsburgh

Personnel

Staff

1990 Indianapolis Colts staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

 Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • Special teams – Brad Seely

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and conditioning – Tom Zupancic

Roster

1990 Indianapolis Colts roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

 Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

 Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams (ST)

 Practice squad

Reserve

Rookies in italics
47 active, 6 reserve, 4 practice squad

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Game Site Attendance
1 September 9 at Buffalo Bills L 10–26 0–1 Ralph Wilson Stadium 78,899
2 September 16 New England Patriots L 14–16 0–2 Hoosier Dome 49,256
3 September 23 at Houston Oilers L 10–24 0–3 Astrodome 50,093
4 September 30 at Philadelphia Eagles W 24–23 1–3 Veterans Stadium 62,067
5 October 7 Kansas City Chiefs W 23–19 2–3 Hoosier Dome 54,950
6 Bye
7 October 21 Denver Broncos L 17–27 2–4 Hoosier Dome 59,850
8 October 28 Miami Dolphins L 7–27 2–5 Hoosier Dome 59,213
9 November 5 New York Giants L 7–24 2–6 Hoosier Dome 58,688
10 November 11 at New England Patriots W 13–10 3–6 Foxboro Stadium 28,924
11 November 18 New York Jets W 17–14 4–6 Hoosier Dome 47,283
12 November 25 at Cincinnati Bengals W 34–20 5–6 Riverfront Stadium 60,051
13 December 2 at Phoenix Cardinals L 17–20 5–7 Sun Devil Stadium 38,043
14 December 9 Buffalo Bills L 7–31 5–8 Hoosier Dome 53,268
15 December 16 at New York Jets W 29–21 6–8 Giants Stadium 41,423
16 December 22 Washington Redskins W 35–28 7–8 Hoosier Dome 58,173
17 December 30 at Miami Dolphins L 17–23 7–9 Joe Robbie Stadium 59,547
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

AFC East
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
(1) Buffalo Bills 13 3 0 .813 7–1 10–2 428 263 L1
(4) Miami Dolphins 12 4 0 .750 7–1 10–2 336 242 W1
Indianapolis Colts 7 9 0 .438 3–5 5–7 281 353 L1
New York Jets 6 10 0 .375 2–6 4–10 295 345 W2
New England Patriots 1 15 0 .063 1–7 1–11 181 446 L14

Season summary

Week 1 at Bills

Week One: Indianapolis Colts (0–0) at Buffalo Bills (0–0)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Colts 3 0 7010
Bills 3 13 01026

at Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York

Game information

See also

References

source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1990_Indianapolis_Colts_season