By Darin Travel back to December 18, the date that launched the NFL postseason! Dive into the wild story of the first-ever NFL Championship Game in 1932, which was moved indoors due to a Chicago blizzard, where a controversial Bronko Nagurski jump pass secured the title. This date also delivered the Philadelphia Eagles’ 1949 shutout over the Rams in a rainstorm, Sammy Baugh’s AFL coaching debut, and the Seattle Seahawks’ first-ever division title. Explore the careers of Hall of Fame legends like Gus Welch and Jerry Robinson in this definitive look at December 18th’s enduring legacy in football history.
December 18 Football History Timeline
- December 18, 1932 – Chicago, Illinois – The NFL decided that a final game to determine a champion would be played in a special game at Wrigley Field in Chicago on December 18, 1932. This first postseason game in NFL history had some huge twists and turns, making it quite a remarkable story, even aside from the fact that a game was being played to determine an NFL Champion. The first odd occurrence was that Spartans star Earl “Dutch” Clark was unable to play because he had to work. While that may sound crazy to us today, the fact was that professional players of that era did not earn enough to live on year-round. Most had to take off-season jobs to make ends meet, even the superstars like Dutch Clark, who worked as the Head Basketball Coach at Colorado College, and his hoops team had a game on that December 18, and Dutch couldn’t get off work to make the football game in Chicago. The second crazy thing that happened was that, due to a freak late-fall blizzard in Chicago, the game had to be moved inside Chicago Stadium because Wrigley Field was covered with deep snow and frozen, with dangerous sub-zero temperatures. The playing field had to be modified for indoor play, so the game was played on a field only 80 yards long and about 30 yards narrower than the normal width the teams played on all season. The last item that occurred surrounding the game happened during the contest’s only touchdown. Bronko Nagurski threw a scoring jump pass to Red Grange, but the Spartans argued that Nagurski did not meet the requirement of legal forward passes in those days of being 5 yards or more behind the line. The play stood, and the Bears went on to win the NFL title by a score of 9-0. The Spartans franchise became the Lions in 1933, when they moved from Portsmouth, Ohio, to Detroit, Michigan, after a Detroit radio businessman, George A. Richards, purchased the team’s rights for $8000. This was a hefty sum at the time, but Portsmouth had, after all, just played in a somewhat impromptu first NFL Championship game against the Chicago Bears, shorthanded by the absence of their star player. The Motor City was a risky place to put the team at this point, as three previous franchises had failed there, but Richards knew the city needed a winner and took the chance. It was well worth his risk as the newly named Lions team won the NFL Title in 1935 and later in the 1952, 1953, and 1957 seasons. Richards took another chance with his football franchise in 1934, scheduling a game on Thanksgiving Day. Though it failed when other cities (save Dallas a few decades later), the Turkey Day game in the Motor City was a huge success. Unfortunately, in 1940, Mr. Richards had to sell the franchise due to declining health and a fine from the NFL for draft tampering, but his $ 8,000 initial investment turned into a $225,000 sale of the Lions to retail magnate Fred Mandel. The Lions were eventually purchased by the descendants of Henry Ford and are owned by the family to this day.
- December 18, 1949 – LA Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, CA –The LA Rams and the Philadelphia Eagles met for the National Football League Championship Title. Weather conditions were dreadful, with driving rain turning the grassy field into quite a quagmire. A 1988 Pro Football Researchers Association article on the game in the Coffin Corner Volume 10 shares the story. Over an inch of rain fell in the LA area, and many called for the game to be postponed until Christmas Day. NFL Commissioner Bert Bell had nothing to do with any postponement and ordered the game to go on as scheduled. The Eagles, with their solid defense, were a 7-point betting odds favorite in the contest. What they did was double the win margin as their stifling defense shut down the Rams in a 14-0 victory. The Eagles offense put one touchdown on the board, but the rest was all defense as the Rams were held to a record 21 total rushing yards, and special teams blocked a punt in the second half for the other Philly score.
- On December 18, 1959, Former Washington Redskins quarterback Sammy Baugh was named the first coach of the AFL’s New York Titans. Baugh was a collegiate head coach at Hardin-Simmons University from 1955 through 1959 after his playing days were over. He spent two seasons as the Titans’ head coach, posting a 14-14 record. He later coached at the University of Tulsa and even became the Houston Oilers’ fourth-ever coach in 1964, per the missyablue.com website. (source)
- December 18, 1988: Seattle Seahawks win their 1st-ever division title, per the Washington Post. The division AFC West title came down to a pivotal game with the LA Raiders. Yes, I did just say AFC West and the LA Raiders. Seattle was in the AFC West Division from its inception in the 1970s until the 2002 realignment, when it moved to the NFC West. Also, the Raiders franchise spent some time calling Los Angeles home between stints in Oakland and before moving to Las Vegas in 2020. Now that that is cleared up, the Seahawks won the AFC West with a 9-7 record, and they dashed the Raiders’ hopes, who came into the game at 7-8. It was a close one, though, as the final score was Seahawks 43, Raiders 37. QB Dave Krieg threw four TDs, and wideout Steve Largent extended his streak of consecutive games catching a pass to 167 in the victory. The Seahawks would lose to the Cincinnati Bengals 21-13 in the AFC Divisional Playoffs.
December 18 Football Hall of Fame Birthdays
- Gus Welch
- Jerry Robinson
- Scott Woerner
Conclusion
From the improvised indoor field of 1932 to the torrential downpour of the 1949 NFL Championship, December 18th consistently proved that championship football finds a way. This date gave us the founding principles of the modern Detroit Lions franchise, saw Sammy Baugh lead the new AFL, and celebrated the rise of the Seattle Seahawks with their first AFC West crown. Anchored by the collegiate achievements of College Football Hall of Fame greats like Gus Welch and Scott Woerner, December 18th stands as a testament to the resilience and groundbreaking moments that define the heart of football history.
