Hall of Famer John Mackey has been credited with how NFL teams now run their offenses. Drafted by the Baltimore Colts with the number two pick out of Syracuse University in 1963, Mackey revolutionized the tight end position. Before Mackey’s arrival in Baltimore, tight ends were often used mainly for blocking and catching short passes. However, combined with his size and speed, Mackey became a downfield passing weapon and was an integral part of the might Baltimore Colts offense in the 1960s and early 1970s.

                This offered Baltimore Colts home blue jersey was worn by Mackey during his last two seasons with the Colts in 1970 and 1971. This size 48 Sand-Knit jersey features Mackey’s number “88” sewn on the front, back and sleeves in white tackle twill. The shoulders have the Colts’ traditional two white-stripe diagonal pattern and on the back shoulder is “MACKEY”, which is sewn on in white tackle twill on a matching blue name plate. The Sand-Knit tag is sewn on the bottom front left tail. This jersey displays outstanding game use and there are several team repairs – seven on the front, three on the right sleeve, one on the left sleeve and four on the back. There is also evidence of a previous player using this jersey as the number “37” stitching outline can be seen from the inside. This jersey can be dated to the 1970 and 1971 seasons as the NFL mandated all teams put names on the backs of the jerseys starting in 1970 as part of the merger with the AFL and Mackey’s last season with the Colts was 1971 before moving on to the San Diego Chargers in 1972 to close out his career. The tackle twill numbers and letters display toning and the white stripes on the jersey also display toning. This jersey comes with a LOA from noted game used jersey expert Dave Miedema.

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