1941 NFL Championship

Lore & Background

The game was played two weeks after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Attendance was 13,341, the fewest to see an NFL title game, possibly due to wartime restrictions. The Bears became the first team to win consecutive NFL championships since the title game era began in 1933.

In Their Own Story

The wind howled off Lake Michigan, biting through the wool coats of the Wrigley Field faithful as December 21, 1941, arrived. Inside the stadium, the air was thick with anticipation and the smell of roasted peanuts. Sid Luckman stood at the line, his eyes scanning a Giants defense that looked confused before the ball was even snapped. He called an audible, his voice cutting through the chill. The T-Formation shifted, a blur of motion. Snap. Handoff to George McAfee. He surged forward, breaking a tackle, then another. The crowd roared as he crossed the goal line, adding another point to a score that was already becoming a rout. This wasn't just a game; it was an execution of Halas's vision, played out on frozen turf under the shadow of a looming war.

Reader's Guide

The Bears kicked three field goals in the first half to lead 9–6 at halftime. The Giants tied the game with a short field goal early in the third quarter, but Chicago scored four unanswered touchdowns to win 37–9. With under two minutes remaining, Ray 'Scooter' McLean drop-kicked the extra point, the last successful drop kick in the NFL for 64 years.

Did You Know?

• The attendance of 13,341 was the fewest to see an NFL title game.
• Two players in the game—Young Bussey of the Bears and Jack Lummus of the Giants—were killed in action in World War II in early 1945.
• Each Bears player received $431, while each Giants player received $288, less than half of the previous year's shares.
• The game was played at Wrigley Field in Chicago.