1963 NFL season
Encyclopedia
The 1963 NFL season was the 44th regular season
of the National Football League
. On April 17, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle
indefinitely suspended Green Bay Packers
running back
Paul Hornung
and Detroit Lions
defensive tackle Alex Karras
for gambling on their own teams, as well as other NFL games; Hornung and Karras would miss the entire season. In addition, five other Detroit players were fined $
2,000 each for placing bets on one game in which they did not participate.
The season ended when the Chicago Bears
defeated the New York Giants
in the NFL Championship Game.
, the NFL played its normal schedule of games. NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle said about playing the games: "It has been traditional in sports for athletes to perform in times of great personal tragedy. Football was Mr. Kennedy's game. He thrived on competition." Attendance at games went unaffected despite the assassination.
However, the Philadelphia Eagles
and the Washington Redskins
had sought postponement of the games. Eventually, the game between the two teams in Philadelphia
saw acts of kindness from both sides. Before the game, each of the Eagles players contributed $50 to the family of Dallas Police Officer J.D. Tippit, who was killed by the assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald
. After the game ended, the Redskins sent the game ball to the White House
, thanking Rozelle for allowing the games to be played that weekend. Coach Bill McPeak
said that the players on the Redskins, who won the game, asked him to send the ball to the White House because they said that they were "playing...for President Kennedy and in his memory."
The Western Division race was close as well. The Bears were 5–0 and the Packers 4–1 as of October 13. In Week Six, Green Bay won at St. Louis, 30–7, while Chicago lost at San Francisco, 20–14, tying the Bears and Packers for the lead at 6–1. Both teams continued to win, and then met in Chicago on November 17, where Green Bay lost, 26–7.
The games scheduled for Week Eleven took place on the weekend after the Kennedy assassination. Unlike the American Football League
, which cancelled its schedule, the NFL chose to play the games, although they were not televised due to round-the-clock network TV coverage of the assassination aftermath. The Giants lost at home to St. Louis, 24-17, while Cleveland beat visiting Dallas 27-17, to give the three teams identical 8-3-0 records. The Bears were losing at Pittsburgh until Roger Leclerc kicked a field goal to get a 17-17 tie, and to stay half a game ahead of Green Bay.
In Week Twelve, Green Bay's chance to win was cancelled when Detroit tied the game 10-10, while Chicago averted another loss by tying Minnesota 17-17. The three way tie in the Eastern was pared down when Cleveland beat St. Louis 24-10, and New York won (34-27 over Dallas).
Week Thirteen saw both the Bears and Packers winning, while Cleveland lost to Detroit, 38-10. New York won 44-14 over Washington, but at 10-3-0, New York was trailed by Pittsburgh, which had an unusual 7-3-3 record, and the final game of the season would match the Steelers and Giants at Yankee Stadium.
Under the rules of the day, a Steelers win over the Giants would have given New York a 10-4-0 (.714) finish, while the Steelers' 8-3-3 finish would have been a .727 record and the trip to the championship game. It didn't happen that way. In a game that decided the conference title, New York beat Pittsburgh 33-17. In the Western race, Green Bay needed to win and for Chicago to lose. The Bears' 24-14 win over Detroit was announced while the Packers were in San Francisco, making the 21-17 win on the coast a moot point.
Note: Prior to 1972, the NFL did not include tie games when calculating a team's winning percentage in the official standings
, Chicago, Illinois, December 29, 1963
Regular season (NFL)
The National Football League regular season begins the weekend after Labor Day. Each team plays 16 games during a 17-week period. Traditionally, the majority of each week's games are played on Sunday afternoon, with weekly games on Sunday night and Monday night, and occasional games on Thursday...
of the 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...
. On April 17, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle
Pete Rozelle
Alvin Ray "Pete" Rozelle was the commissioner of the National Football League from January 1960 to November 1989, when he retired from office. Rozelle is credited with making the NFL into one of the most successful sports leagues in the world....
indefinitely suspended Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
Paul Hornung
Paul Hornung
Paul Vernon Hornung is a retired Hall of Fame professional football player who played for the Green Bay Packers from 1957-66...
and Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
defensive tackle Alex Karras
Alex Karras
Alexander George "Alex" Karras , nicknamed "The Mad Duck", is a former football player, professional wrestler, and actor, best known for his stint with the Detroit Lions of the National Football League from 1958–1962 and 1964-1970 and for his role as Mongo in the film Blazing Saddles...
for gambling on their own teams, as well as other NFL games; Hornung and Karras would miss the entire season. In addition, five other Detroit players were fined $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
2,000 each for placing bets on one game in which they did not participate.
The season ended when the Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
defeated the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
in the NFL Championship Game.
JFK Assassination
On November 24, just two days after the assassination of President KennedyAssassination of John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the thirty-fifth President of the United States, was assassinated at 12:30 p.m. Central Standard Time on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas...
, the NFL played its normal schedule of games. NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle said about playing the games: "It has been traditional in sports for athletes to perform in times of great personal tragedy. Football was Mr. Kennedy's game. He thrived on competition." Attendance at games went unaffected despite the assassination.
However, the Philadelphia Eagles
1963 Philadelphia Eagles season
-NFL Draft:-Schedule:-Standings:-References:* * *...
and the Washington Redskins
1963 Washington Redskins season
The 1963 Washington Redskins began with the team trying to improve on their 5-7-2 record from 1962.-NFL Draft:-Schedule:-Standings:-References:...
had sought postponement of the games. Eventually, the game between the two teams in Philadelphia
Franklin Field
Franklin Field is the University of Pennsylvania's stadium for football, field hockey, lacrosse, sprint football, and track and field . It is also used by Penn students for recreation, and for intramural and club sports, including touch football and cricket, and is the site of Penn's graduation...
saw acts of kindness from both sides. Before the game, each of the Eagles players contributed $50 to the family of Dallas Police Officer J.D. Tippit, who was killed by the assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald
Lee Harvey Oswald
Lee Harvey Oswald was, according to four government investigations,These were investigations by: the Federal Bureau of Investigation , the Warren Commission , the House Select Committee on Assassinations , and the Dallas Police Department. the sniper who assassinated John F...
. After the game ended, the Redskins sent the game ball to the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
, thanking Rozelle for allowing the games to be played that weekend. Coach Bill McPeak
Bill McPeak
William Patrick McPeak was an American football player and National Football League coach.-Playing career:...
said that the players on the Redskins, who won the game, asked him to send the ball to the White House because they said that they were "playing...for President Kennedy and in his memory."
Conference races
The Eastern and Western Conference races were undecided until the final day of the regular season. In the Eastern, the Browns were 7-1-0 after eight games, but on November 10, the Browns lost 9–7 at Pittsburgh, while the Giants beat the Eagles 42-14, to tie New York and Cleveland at 7–2–0. When the Giants won again and the Browns lost, the former had the lead.The Western Division race was close as well. The Bears were 5–0 and the Packers 4–1 as of October 13. In Week Six, Green Bay won at St. Louis, 30–7, while Chicago lost at San Francisco, 20–14, tying the Bears and Packers for the lead at 6–1. Both teams continued to win, and then met in Chicago on November 17, where Green Bay lost, 26–7.
The games scheduled for Week Eleven took place on the weekend after the Kennedy assassination. Unlike the American Football League
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
, which cancelled its schedule, the NFL chose to play the games, although they were not televised due to round-the-clock network TV coverage of the assassination aftermath. The Giants lost at home to St. Louis, 24-17, while Cleveland beat visiting Dallas 27-17, to give the three teams identical 8-3-0 records. The Bears were losing at Pittsburgh until Roger Leclerc kicked a field goal to get a 17-17 tie, and to stay half a game ahead of Green Bay.
In Week Twelve, Green Bay's chance to win was cancelled when Detroit tied the game 10-10, while Chicago averted another loss by tying Minnesota 17-17. The three way tie in the Eastern was pared down when Cleveland beat St. Louis 24-10, and New York won (34-27 over Dallas).
Week Thirteen saw both the Bears and Packers winning, while Cleveland lost to Detroit, 38-10. New York won 44-14 over Washington, but at 10-3-0, New York was trailed by Pittsburgh, which had an unusual 7-3-3 record, and the final game of the season would match the Steelers and Giants at Yankee Stadium.
Under the rules of the day, a Steelers win over the Giants would have given New York a 10-4-0 (.714) finish, while the Steelers' 8-3-3 finish would have been a .727 record and the trip to the championship game. It didn't happen that way. In a game that decided the conference title, New York beat Pittsburgh 33-17. In the Western race, Green Bay needed to win and for Chicago to lose. The Bears' 24-14 win over Detroit was announced while the Packers were in San Francisco, making the 21-17 win on the coast a moot point.
| Week | WESTERN | EASTERN | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 teams (Chi, Det, Min) | 1-0-0 | 3 teams (Cle, NYG, StL) | 1-0-0 |
| 2 | CHICAGO BEARS | 2-0-0 | Tie (Cle, StL) | 2-0-0 |
| 3 | CHICAGO BEARS | 3-0-0 | CLEVELAND BROWNS | 3-0-0 |
| 4 | CHICAGO BEARS | 4-0-0 | CLEVELAND BROWNS | 4-0-0 |
| 5 | CHICAGO BEARS | 5-0-0 | CLEVELAND BROWNS | 5-0-0 |
| 6 | Tie (Chi, GB) | 5-1-0 | CLEVELAND BROWNS | 6-0-0 |
| 7 | Tie (Chi, GB) | 6-1-0 | CLEVELAND BROWNS | 6-1-0 |
| 8 | Tie (Chi, GB) | 7-1-0 | CLEVELAND BROWNS | 7-1-0 |
| 9 | Tie (Chi, GB) | 8-1-0 | Tie (Cle, NYG) | 7-2-0 |
| 10 | CHICAGO BEARS | 9-1-0 | NEW YORK GIANTS | 8-2-0 |
| 11 | CHICAGO BEARS | 9-1-1 | Tie (Cle, NYG, StL) | 8-3-0 |
| 12 | CHICAGO BEARS | 9-1-2 | Tie (Cle, NYG) | 9-3-0 |
| 13 | CHICAGO BEARS | 10-1-2 | NEW YORK GIANTS | 10-3-0 |
| 14 | CHICAGO BEARS | 11-1-2 | NEW YORK GIANTS | 11-3-0 |
Final standings
W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT= Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points AgainstNote: Prior to 1972, the NFL did not include tie games when calculating a team's winning percentage in the official standings
NFL Championship Game
Chicago 14, New York 10 at Wrigley FieldWrigley Field
Wrigley Field is a baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales...
, Chicago, Illinois, December 29, 1963
Awards
| Most Valuable Player NFL Most Valuable Player Award The National Football League Most Valuable Player Award is given by various entities, most notably the Associated Press , to the player who is considered most valuable in the league. When the award is referred to without mentioning the organization, it generally means the AP award. The AP NFL MVP... |
Y.A. Tittle, 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... , N.Y. Giants |
| Coach of the Year NFL Coach of the Year Award The National Football League Coach of the Year Award is presented annually by various news and sports organizations to the NFL head coach who has done the most outstanding job of working with the talent he has at his disposal. Currently, the most widely recognized award is presented by the... |
George Halas George Halas George Stanley Halas, Sr. , nicknamed "Papa Bear" and "Mr. Everything", was a player, coach, owner and pioneer in professional American football. He was the iconic longtime leader of the NFL's Chicago Bears... , Chicago |