1933 NFL Championship Game
The NFL's first scheduled title game: Bears 23, Giants 21 at Wrigley Field.
The 1933 NFL Championship Game was the first championship game the NFL ever scheduled. On December 17, 1933, at Wrigley Field in Chicago, the Western Division champion Chicago Bears beat the Eastern Division champion New York Giants 23-21, scoring the deciding touchdown with under two minutes left.
Quick Facts
- Visitor
- New York Giants
- Home
- Chicago Bears
- Home coach
- George Halas
- Visitor coach
- Steve Owen
- Visitor record
- 11–3
- Home record
- 10–2–1
- Visitor total
- 21
- Home total
- 23
Facts from the source article.
Background
The game existed because new Boston Redskins owner George Preston Marshall persuaded the other owners to split the ten-team league into two divisions whose winners would meet for the title. The Bears went 10-2-1 behind running backs Red Grange and Bronko Nagurski with Keith Molesworth at quarterback; the Giants went 11-3 with quarterback Harry Newman. The teams had split their two regular-season meetings, 14-10 to Chicago and 3-0 to New York. Chicago hosted because of its better winning percentage. The win was the Bears' second title in a row and the third under George Halas. The Chicago Tribune put paid attendance at about 21,000, with later records giving 26,000.
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