NFL Championship Game, 1945
Encyclopedia
In the 1945
National Football League
Championship Game, the Cleveland Rams
defeated the Washington Redskins
, 15–14, at Cleveland Municipal Stadium
in Cleveland, Ohio
on December 16, 1945. This was the last game before the Rams moved to Los Angeles, California
and was the 13th annual NFL championship game. One play which provided the Rams' margin of victory led to a significant rule change in professional American football
. Additionally, It was the coldest NFL championship game up to that time with a temperature of -8°F.
, quarterback
Sammy Baugh
threw, but the ball hit the goal post (which at the time were on the goal line instead of at the back of the end zone) and bounced back to the ground in the end zone. Under the rules at the time, this was ruled as a safety and thus gave the Rams a 2-0 lead.
In the second quarter, Baugh suffered bruised ribs and was replaced by Frank Filchock
. Filchock threw a 38-yard touchdown
pass to Steve Bagarus
to give the Redskins a 7-2 lead. But the Rams scored just before halftime when rookie quarterback Bob Waterfield
threw a 37-yard touchdown pass to Jim Benton
. Waterfield's ensuing extra point
was partially
blocked, with the ball teetering on the crossbar, but it dropped over to give Cleveland a 9-7 lead.
In the third quarter, the Rams increased their lead when Jim Gillette scored on a 44-yard touchdown reception, but this time the extra point was missed. The Redskins then came back to cut their deficit to 15-14 with Seymour's
8-yard touchdown catch from Filchock. In the fourth quarter, Washington kicker Joe Aguirre
missed two field goals attempts, of 46 and 31 yards, that could have won the game.
But it was the safety that proved to be the margin of victory. Redskins owner George Preston Marshall
was so mad at the outcome that he became a major force in passing the following major rule change after the season: A forward pass that strikes the goal posts is automatically ruled incomplete. This later became known as the "Baugh/Marshall Rule".
|-
! Scoring Play
! Score
|-
|colspan="4" align="center"| 1st Quarter
|-
| CLE – Safety, Baugh's pass hit the goal post and became incomplete in the end zone
| CLE 2–0
|-
|colspan="4" align="center"| 2nd Quarter
|-
| WAS – Bagarus 38 pass from Filchock (Aguirre kick)
| WAS 7–2
|-
| CLE – Benton 37 pass from Waterfield (Waterfield kick)
| CLE 9–7
|-
|colspan="4" align="center"| 3rd Quarter
|-
| CLE – Gillette 44 pass from Waterfield (kick failed)
| CLE 15–7
|-
| WAS – Seymour 8 pass from Filchock (Aguirre kick)
| CLE 15–14
|-
|colspan="4" align="center"|
1945 NFL season
The 1945 NFL season was the 26th regular season of the National Football League. The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Chicago Cardinals resumed their traditional operations....
National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
Championship Game, the Cleveland Rams
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,...
defeated the Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
, 15–14, at Cleveland Municipal Stadium
Cleveland Stadium
Cleveland Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium, located in Cleveland, Ohio. In its final years, the stadium seated 74,438, for baseball and 81,000, for football. It was one of the early multi-purpose stadiums, built to accommodate both baseball and football...
in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
on December 16, 1945. This was the last game before the Rams moved to Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
and was the 13th annual NFL championship game. One play which provided the Rams' margin of victory led to a significant rule change in professional American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
. Additionally, It was the coldest NFL championship game up to that time with a temperature of -8°F.
The game
In the first quarter, the Redskins had the ball at their own 5-yard line. Dropping back into the end zoneEnd zone
In gridiron-based codes of football, the end zone refers to the scoring area on the field. It is the area between the end line and goal line bounded by the sidelines. There are two end zones, each being on an opposite side of the field...
, quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
Sammy Baugh
Sammy Baugh
Samuel Adrian "Slingin' Sammy" Baugh was an American football player and coach. He played college football for the Horned Frogs at Texas Christian University, where he was a two-time All-American. He then played in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins from 1937 to 1952...
threw, but the ball hit the goal post (which at the time were on the goal line instead of at the back of the end zone) and bounced back to the ground in the end zone. Under the rules at the time, this was ruled as a safety and thus gave the Rams a 2-0 lead.
In the second quarter, Baugh suffered bruised ribs and was replaced by Frank Filchock
Frank Filchock
Frank Joseph Filchock was an American and Canadian football tailback/quarterback and coach. As a consequence of a famous scandal regarding the 1946 NFL Championship game, he was suspended by the National Football League from 1947 to 1950 for associating with gamblers.-Early career:Born in 1916 in...
. Filchock threw a 38-yard touchdown
Touchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in American and Canadian football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone.-Description:...
pass to Steve Bagarus
Steve Bagarus
Stephen Michael Bagarus was an American football running back in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins and the Los Angeles Rams. He played college football at the University of Notre Dame....
to give the Redskins a 7-2 lead. But the Rams scored just before halftime when rookie quarterback Bob Waterfield
Bob Waterfield
Robert "Bob" Stanton Waterfield was an American football player.Waterfield attended Van Nuys High School, in Van Nuys, California and went on to play college football for UCLA. In 1943 he led the Bruins to the Pacific Coast Conference football championship...
threw a 37-yard touchdown pass to Jim Benton
Jim Benton (football player)
James Warren Benton was a record setting Arkansas, Southwest Conference, NCAA and National Football League pass receiver who was selected for the NFL 1940s All-Decade Team...
. Waterfield's ensuing extra point
Extra Point
Extra Point is a twice-daily, two-minute segment on ESPN Radio that covers generic sports-related topical news and opinion. The AM edition airs Monday through Saturday at various times between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. ET, and the PM edition airs Monday through Friday between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. ET...
was partially
blocked, with the ball teetering on the crossbar, but it dropped over to give Cleveland a 9-7 lead.
In the third quarter, the Rams increased their lead when Jim Gillette scored on a 44-yard touchdown reception, but this time the extra point was missed. The Redskins then came back to cut their deficit to 15-14 with Seymour's
Bob Seymour
Robert Arnold Seymour was an American football running back in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins. Seymour also played in the All-America Football Conference for the Los Angeles Dons. He played college football at the University of Oklahoma and was drafted in the tenth...
8-yard touchdown catch from Filchock. In the fourth quarter, Washington kicker Joe Aguirre
Joe Aguirre
Joseph A. Aguirre was an American football tight end in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins, as well as for the Los Angeles Dons of the All-America Football Conference . He also spent time in the Canadian Football League with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Edmonton Eskimos, and...
missed two field goals attempts, of 46 and 31 yards, that could have won the game.
But it was the safety that proved to be the margin of victory. Redskins owner George Preston Marshall
George Preston Marshall
George Preston Marshall was the owner and president of the Washington Redskins of the National Football League from 1932 until his death in 1969.-Contributions:...
was so mad at the outcome that he became a major force in passing the following major rule change after the season: A forward pass that strikes the goal posts is automatically ruled incomplete. This later became known as the "Baugh/Marshall Rule".
Scoring summary
{| class="wikitable"|-
! Scoring Play
! Score
|-
|colspan="4" align="center"| 1st Quarter
|-
| CLE – Safety, Baugh's pass hit the goal post and became incomplete in the end zone
| CLE 2–0
|-
|colspan="4" align="center"| 2nd Quarter
|-
| WAS – Bagarus 38 pass from Filchock (Aguirre kick)
| WAS 7–2
|-
| CLE – Benton 37 pass from Waterfield (Waterfield kick)
| CLE 9–7
|-
|colspan="4" align="center"| 3rd Quarter
|-
| CLE – Gillette 44 pass from Waterfield (kick failed)
| CLE 15–7
|-
| WAS – Seymour 8 pass from Filchock (Aguirre kick)
| CLE 15–14
|-
|colspan="4" align="center"|