1950 NFL Season - Regular Season Highlights

Regular Season Highlights

• Week One The opening game of the 1950 NFL season was a matchup between the defending champions of the AAFC and the NFL, the Cleveland Browns and the Philadelphia Eagles, respectively. The teams had never met prior to September 16, 1950, and a crowd of 71,237 turned out in Philadelphia. The Browns won 35–10. The First Fifty Years, a 1969 book that chronicles the first half-century of the NFL, listed the game as one of "Ten That Mattered" in bringing nationwide prestige to the league.
• In Week Three (October 1), the New York Giants handed the Browns their first shutout ever, winning 6–0 in Cleveland while grounding Otto Graham's passing attack.
• In Week Five (October 15), the Steelers beat the Giants 17–6 at the Polo Grounds, knocking them out of the American Conference lead. The other New York team, the Yanks, had a share of the lead in the National Conference after a 29–24 win in Yankee Stadium over the 49ers, but only 5,740 fans turned out to watch.
• The Browns-Giants rematch took place on October 22 in Week Six in New York, and the Giants won again, 17–13. In the west, the Colts scored four touchdowns against the Rams, but the Rams had ten in a 70–27 blowout.
• L.A. had a 65–24 win over Detroit in Week Seven (October 29), which saw the Eagles reclaim the lead in their conference with a 35–3 win over Washington and the Giants' 17–3 loss to the Cardinals. In the other New York-Chicago game, the Yanks raised their record to 6–1–0 with a 38–27 win over the Bears.
• The Yanks were idle in Week Eight (November 6), in which field goals played a prominent role. Pittsburgh's Joe Geri booted all the points in the Steelers' 9–7 win over the Eagles, and the Giants' Ray Poole made a 40 yard kick with 0:04 left to beat Washington 24–21. The Browns regained the lead of the American conference in a 10–7 win over the Cards, with the margin being a Lou Groza field goal.
• In Week Nine (November 13), the New York Yanks lost their rematch with the Bears, 28–20, putting both teams at 6–2, while the Rams took the lead in the National with a 45–7 win over Green Bay. Meanwhile, former AAFC teams Cleveland and San Francisco met for the first time in the NFL, with the Browns winning 34–17 to stay in front in the American.
• A crowd of 42,673 turned out at Yankee Stadium to watch the New York Yanks, who lost to the Rams 43–35 in Week Ten (November 20), as L.A. and Cleveland kept their leads.
• The big game of Week Eleven on November 27 was in Chicago, where the Bears took a 24–0 lead over the Rams on the way to a 24–14 win, and a half game lead (8–2 vs. 8–3) over them in the National Conference. Cleveland had a bye week, and the Giants 7–3 win over the Eagles tied them with the Browns in the American, with 8–2 records.
• On December 3, 1950, all six of the Week Twelve games had significance. Taunted as a team that couldn't win a game without passing, the Cleveland Browns won again against the Eagles, 13–7, this time without Otto Graham attempting a pass. There were 17 punt returns, 12 by Philadelphia, both records. In New York, George Taliaferro had a record 8 kickoff returns for the Yanks in a 51–7 loss to the Giants. Both the Browns and Giants stayed tied in the American Conference with records of 9–2–0. Bill Dudley of Washington returned a punt 96 yards for a touchdown in a 24–7 win over the Steelers. In the National Conference, Cloyce Box of Detroit had 302 yards receiving, one yard short of the NFL record, in a 45–21 win over Baltimore. Tom Fears had an NFL record 18 pass receptions for the Rams in a 51–14 win over Green Bay and a 9–3–0 record to lead the division. Meanwhile, the Bears were upset by the crosstown Cardinals, 20–10, dropping them to 8–3–0, a half game behind L.A.
• In the final week, Week Thirteen, the Browns, Giants and Bears were all in must-win situations, while the Rams had finished their season at 9–3–0. The Bears, at 8–3–0, were tied 3–3 with the Lions after three quarters. George Blanda booted a 22 yard field goal and Chicago held on for a 6–3 win to give them a 9–3–0 record and a tie for the American Conference title with the Rams. The Browns and Giants were both at 9–2–0, and both were playing on the road. Cleveland handled Washington 45–21, while the Giants had to fight off numerous drives by Philadelphia to protect a 9–7 win. With ties for first place in both conferences, the NFL title game had to be delayed a week while an unprecedented four team playoff took place. The Giants and Browns would meet in Cleveland, while the Bears and the Rams would meet in Los Angeles.