The 1936 Professional Football Season

In this edition, we discuss the history of Pro Football in 1936. The Football History Rewind Series Part 79, goes through the highlights of the 1936 NFL season including the first Draft, a rival league, big games and the top players. 

The 1936 NFL season was the 17th regular season of the National Football League and it is filled with interesting items that helped shape the modern game. Possibly the most significant takeaway of the year was the stability shown in the League. For the first time, since its inception in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, there were no teams that folded that played the previous season. Likewise there was no further growth of the organization either, as no new franchises came onboard.

A second advent in 1936 NFL football was that all teams played the same number of scheduled games for the first time (12).  League President Joe Carr saw his nine-team league have a bit of competition from a rival pro football organization, a group that called itself the American Football League.

The American Football League 2.0 was a short-lived but exciting attempt at a rival pro football institution. Many of the franchises of the AFL robbed the rosters of the NFL teams they shared cities with. That is except for Booston who refused to take any players from the NFL Boston Redskins franchise. (We will see in a bit how this may have benefitted the Redskins)

This AFL was the second of three instances an alternate League by that name would compete with the NFL, the first being the one organized by Red Grange land C.C. Pyle back in 1926. This second-generation AFL would feature an six-team league organized by former New York Giants personnel director Dr. Harry March. The popularity of the rival League was evident when fifteen cities launched applications to join the AFL. After careful consideration and viability items were addressed, March and a few others selected the six best choices to help the new League. Dr. March spearheaded the effort to have it be a league with the players' input in decision-making. March served as the president of the fledgling association until his resignation in October and his replacement by New York Yankees Football franchise owner James Bush.

The teams in this edition of the American Football League were:

• Boston Shamrocks - The eventual AFL Champions.
• New York Yankees - The second time a pro football franchise used this iconic MLB name in an organization called the AFL.
• Cleveland Rams - The inaugural season of the current LA Rams franchise in pro football
• Brooklyn Tigers
• Pittsburgh Americans
• Syracuse Braves

The AFL had attendance issues with five of its teams. New York, Cleveland, and Boston had substantial numbers at the box office, but their revenue needed more to carry the load of the entire League. The AFL was looking for some additional viable franchises after it first season.

The National Football League, despite the competition, kept rolling along. The NFL's nine teams comprised the Chicago Bears, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Pirates, Green Bay Packers, Chicago Cardinals, Boston Redskins, Brooklyn Dodgers, and Detroit Lions.

Philadelphia Owner Bert Bell's suggestion of holding a League-wide Draft came to fruition that year with the Eagles picking former University of Chicago Maroons star Jay Berwanger. Though Berwanger never played a snap in the League, the process of teams with the worst records the previous season set the standard for parity in not only the NFL and pro football but for professional sports across the globe.

Third season of NFL's 12-year ban on black players

Monnet_Gallops-GB_1936 07 Dec 1936, Mon Green Bay Press-Gazette (Green Bay, Wisconsin) Newspapers.com

Green Bay ran away with the NFL's Western Division by outclassing the competition with a stellar record of 10-1-1. In the Eastern Division, there was a race between three teams to claim the right to win the Division. Near the end of the scheduled season, a big game was on the docket to help determine the Eastern representative in the postseason. The Pittsburgh Pirates were at 6–5 and the Boston Redskins at 5–5 when they met on November 29 in Boston before a crowd of only 7,000. The lack of fan support did not deter Boston, and on the arm of Sammy Baugh, defeated the  Pirates 30–0. The Redskins, now at 6–5, had a showdown set in the final game of their regular season with the 5–5–1 New York Giants, who remained contenders for the Divisional crown. On December 6, the Boston Redskins won the contest 14–0 before 18,000 spectators in the Polo Grounds.

Redskins Owner George Preston Marshall, unhappy with the way his team had been supported in Beantown, decided to change the location of the 1936 Championship from his homefield in Boston to the New York Polo Grounds, where his team defeated the Giants a game earlier in front of a nice sized crowd. 

The Green Bay Packers had the best regular season record, and they defeated the Boston Redskins in the NFL Championship Game, 21-6.

The Packers were led by quarterback Arnie Herber, who threw for 1,239 yards and eight touchdowns. Herber's favorite target was receiver Don Hutson, who caught 536 yards and six touchdowns.

The Redskins were led by quarterback Sammy Baugh, who threw for 913 yards and eight touchdowns. Cliff Battles was the Redskins' leading rusher with 830 yards and eight touchdowns.
 

Here are some stories that relate and enhance some of the subject matter mentioned above in the 1936 pro football story.

Who was George Preston Marshall

Information on the polarizing person of George Preston Marshall, founder of the Washington Commanders franchise.

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Dr Harry March

Find out more on who Dr Harry March was and his role in football history

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Sammy Baugh

Born March 17, 1914 birth in Temple, Texas on this day. Sammy Baugh according to the NFF says that Baugh was also an excellent punter, who as a professional would lead the league four times. During a 3-2 TCU victory over LSU in the Sugar Bowl, Baugh punted 14 times for a 48 yard average, placing many kicks inside the Tiger five yard line. Baugh gained All America status in 1935 and repeated as a consensus All-America in his 1936 senior season. The National Football Foundation saluted the great career of Sammy Baugh by placing his stats and story in the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951. When Baugh left TCU he joined the Washington Redskins when they used the number one overall pick in the 1937 NFL Draft to select him. In 16 professional seasons Sammy played on five division and two league championship teams. As a passer Baugh led the league six times and still holds many NFL passing records tossing an amazing for the time 187 TDs. In addition to being a great passer and punter, Baugh was also an extremely efficient defensive player as he led the NFL in interceptions in 1943 and finished his NFL career with 31. The Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrined Sammy Baugh's gridiron legacy in 1963.

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Arnie Herber

Born April 2, 1920, was Green Bay Packers legendary Quarterback Arnie Herber. Before the great Packers, Bart Starr, Brett Favre, and Aaron Rodgers signal callers were Herber.

Inducted Pro Football Hall of Fame: 1966

NFL All-Decade Team: 1930s

Official NFL All-Pro Team (11-man team, chosen 1931-42): 1932

Other years selected to an all-pro first team: 1935, '36

Packers All-Time Team: 1946, '57

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The banner image of Monnet Gallops-GB that came from the 1936 07 Dec 1936, Monday Green Bay Press-Gazette (Green Bay, Wisconsin) courtesy of Newspapers.com, was cropped for the banner but seen above int he body of the post in its entirety.

Special thanks for the websites of RetroSeasons.com, Pro Football Hall of Fame, Pro Football Reference website, the PFRA, and Wikipedia for information used to tell this story.