The Game That Changed the NFL Forever

The Game That Changed the NFL Forever

When the NFL formed in 1920, it was using the rules of college football.  They would continue to mostly use college football rules for the first 13 years, that is, until a game on December 18, 1932 between the Portsmouth Spartans and the Chicago Bears.

The 1932 season consisted of eight teams, all in one division. The teams in the NFL at the time were the Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers, Portsmouth Spartans, Boston Braves, New York Giants, Brooklyn Dodgers, Chicago Cardinals and the Staten Island Stapletons.

The Providence Steam Roller was a team that was technically still in the league, though it had suspended operations in 1931, did not play the 1932 season.

Standing were based on winning percentages, ties did not count and were excluded from it.  The Spartans and the Bears tied for first place with a 6-1 record and a .657 winning percentage, ahead of the Green Bay Packers who had 10 wins, 3 losses with a .769. If the way the win-loss differential was different back then the Packers would have been awarded the league title. To make things even more confusing is the Spartans and Bears played each other twice during the regular season to a tie in both games.

So for the first time in league history, there needed to be a one playoff game to determine the league champion.  Because the game would count in the final standings, the loser would finish third behind the Packers. The league had to make a rule change to allow the game since it was banned in 1924.

So now the one playoff game as set between the Portsmouth Spartans and the Chicago Bears at Wrigley Field, until Mother Nature helped make history once again for the NFL. A blizzard accompanied with a sub-zero wind chill caused the game to be moved indoors to Chicago Stadium for the first time in the NFL, a field big enough for only 80-yards long and 10-yards narrower.

The 80-yard field led to special rules adopted for the game. The goal posts were moved from the end lines to the goal lines. The ball was automatically moved back to the 20-yard line every time one team crossed midfield. For the first time in league history, all plays would start with the ball on or between the hash marks.

Then.

The game.

Both defenses would play dominate football, going into the fourth quarter with a scoreless tie, until Charles “Dutch” Brumbaugh handed the ball off to Bronko Nagurski, who then threw the ball to Red Grange into the end zone for the touchdown. The score did not come without controversy, as the Spartans argued that Nagurski was not five yards behind the line of scrimmage, as the rule back then was any forward pass attempted had to be five yards behind the line of scrimmage.

The touchdown stood.

The Bears would later add a safety and go on to win the game and league championship with a 9-0 victory.

The impact of this game would set forth rule changes that would go on to change the landscape of the NFL forever.

1933 Rule Changes

1. The forward pass was legalized to be thrown anywhere behind the line of scrimmage.
2. Hash marks are added 10 yards in from each sideline. All plays would start with the ball on or between the hash marks.
3. To increase the number of field goals and decrease the number of ties, the Goal Posts are moved from the end lines at the back of the end zone to the goal lines (This would later be changed back in 1972)
4. It is a touchback when a punt hits the opponent’s goal posts before being touched by a player of either team.
5. It is a safety if a ball that is kicked behind the goal line hits the goal posts, and rolls back out of the end zone or is recovered by the kicking team.
6. The NFL split its teams into two divisions, the Eastern Division and Western Division.
7. The winners of each division would play for the NFL Championship

The NFL saw three new teams join the league, the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Cincinnati Reds.

The Providence Steam Roller would not come back for the 1933 season and turned over its operations to the NFL while the Staten Island Stapletons also suspended operations for the 1933 season.

The Eastern Division consisted of the New York Giants, Brooklyn Dodgers, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Pirates and the Boston Redskins (Previously the Boston Braves in 1932).

The Western Division consisted of the Chicago Bears, Portsmouth Spartans, Green Bay Packers, Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago Cardinals.

The Chicago Bears would go on to defeat the New York Giants in the first ever NFL Championship Game.

What happened to the rest of the teams from 1933?

The Brooklyn Dodgers changed their name to the Tigers for the 1944 season and never won a game, going 0-10. The team merged with the Boston Yanks for the 1945 season.

The Boston Redskins moved to Washington D.C. in 1937 and still play in the NFL in the NFC East Division. They recently celebrated their anniversary of being in our nation’s capital.

The Pittsburgh Pirates changed their name to the Steelers for the 1940 season. They still play in the AFC North.

The Portsmouth Spartans moved to Detroit in 1934 and became the Lions. They currently play in the NFC North.

The Cincinnati Reds only lasted two seasons and were suspended in the middle of the 1934 season after eight games for not paying their dues. The St. Louis Gunners, an independent team replaced the Reds for their last three scheduled games.

The Chicago Cardinals would relocate to St. Louis in in 1960 until relocating again in 1988 and became the Phoenix Cardinals. They would later be known as the Arizona Cardinals starting in 1994 and currently reside in the NFC West.

The New York Giants, Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers all still continue to play in their respective cities and divisions.

With the NFL now talking about the possibility of expanding the playoffs, one can trace the existence of the NFL you see and enjoy today back to this 1932 playoff game.