A field guide to thrifted sport
Secondhand Archive
INDIANAPOLIS · RCA DOME

The Colts,
archived.

Vintage Indianapolis Colts sweatshirts and jerseys, filed by era. Super Bowl V and XLI champions; Johnny Unitas era in Baltimore. The horseshoe hardly changed, so read the city: Baltimore Colts gear predates the 1984 move. On jerseys, stripes that stop on top of the shoulder mean 2002 or later.

#002C5F·#A2AAAD
4
Harbaugh · 90s
─── A Signature Era ───

Captain Comeback

Harbaugh's '95 team falls one Hail Mary short of the Super Bowl in Pittsburgh. Peyton Manning arrives in '98.

Years
1995–1999
Wore
#4
Tells
Starter pullovers
NO. 01 · DATING COLTS GEAR: LOGO & UNIFORM TIMELINE
  1. 1982-86Gray pants with a horseshoe and the player's number were worn with the blue jerseys.
  2. 1984The team moved from Baltimore to Indianapolis in late March and adopted the "COLTS" wordmark it used until 2019.
  3. 2002Shoulder stripes were cut to stop on top of the shoulder as jerseys got tighter.
  4. 2004The blue was darkened from royal to "speed blue" and facemasks went back to gray.
NO. 02 · THE COLTS INDEX
1960–1979

60s–70s

Baltimore Colts · Unitas
1980–1989

80s

Colts · The Mayflower Move
1990–1999

90s

Indianapolis Colts · Captain Comeback
2000–2009

2000s

Indianapolis Colts · Manning
NO. 03 · IN THE DESIGN ARCHIVE

Specific Colts designs, one page each, with every past eBay example we found.

2006 AFC Championship →

NO. 04 · FIELD NOTES
✓Tag check: does the maker and the country of manufacture fit the era the seller claims?
✓Print check: do the logo, wordmark and any copyright date match that year's team identity?
✓Fit check: ask for pit-to-pit and length in inches; vintage tag sizes run differently.

How to date vintage NFL apparel →