San Diego acquired Hall of Fame quarterback Johnny Unitas…
San Diego acquired Hall of Fame quarterback Johnny Unitas from Baltimore on January 22, 1973 for future considerations that later records describe as cash, commonly reported as $150,000. Unitas played five games with four starts for the Chargers, going 1-3 while throwing for 471 yards, three touchdowns and seven interceptions. He was replaced by rookie Dan Fouts and retired after the season, making the acquisition far more important historically than competitively.
Indianapolis Colts Received
- other future considerations / cash (reported $150,000)
Los Angeles Chargers Received
- player Johnny Unitas
Trade Analysis
The January 22, 1973 transaction is well documented and the legacy row only needs its duplicated consideration fields cleaned up. The Chargers' official trade history lists Johnny Unitas arriving from Baltimore on January 22 for cash. San Diego's 1974 media guide describes the same deal as Unitas for future considerations, while contemporary Associated Press reporting said no current players or draft choices were involved. Later Los Angeles Times coverage identified the sale price as $150,000. Those records support one return to Baltimore: future considerations that ultimately took the form of cash, not two separate unspecified assets.
San Diego received a famous name but very little late-career football value. NFL and Pro Football Reference statistics credit Unitas with five games and four starts for the 1973 Chargers. He completed 34 of 76 passes for 471 yards, three touchdowns and seven interceptions, finishing with a 40.0 passer rating and a 1-3 starting record. He did reach the 40,000-yard career passing milestone in San Diego, but that achievement belongs primarily to the body of work he had already built in Baltimore rather than to the trade's competitive payoff. Rookie Dan Fouts took over the offense, and Unitas did not play another NFL season.
Baltimore's return was financial rather than on-field. Contemporary reporting initially called the compensation future considerations, and Chargers historical records later summarize it as cash. The exact $150,000 figure appears in multiple retrospective reports, including the Los Angeles Times. There is no basis to add a draft choice or player to the Colts' side. Evaluating a cash transaction requires restraint because the public record does not provide a clean football-equivalent conversion for 1973 dollars, but Baltimore at least received a concrete asset for a quarterback who was at the end of his career.
Baltimore therefore gets the better hindsight grade. A B- reflects extracting meaningful cash value while moving on from a declining 40-year-old quarterback whose final season produced limited results. San Diego receives a D+ because Unitas' five-game stint produced only one win as a starter, seven interceptions and no lasting roster value beyond the historical milestone. The deal remains notable because of the player involved, but its realized football outcome strongly favors the Colts rather than the Chargers.