NFL Championship Game, 1948
Encyclopedia
The 1948
National Football League
Championship game was the 16th NFL title game played. The game was a rematch of the previous year's championship game between the Chicago Cardinals
, champions of the Western Division and the Philadelphia Eagles
, champions of the Eastern Division. It was the first NFL championship game to be televised. In the early days of television, "snow" was a frequent problem, but in this case the snow was real. The grounds crew needed the help of players from both teams to remove the tarp from the field, because of the heavy snowfall.
, commissioner of the NFL had considered postponing the game but the players for both teams wanted to play the game. The attendance for the game was 36,309. The teams played a scoreless game until early in the fourth quarter when, after Chicago had fumbled in their own end of the field, the Eagles recovered the fumble that set up Steve Van Buren
's five yard touchdown at 1:05 into the fourth quarter.
This game turned out be the Cardinals' last appearance in any NFL Championship game until Super Bowl XLIII
.
1948 NFL season
The 1948 NFL season was the 29th regular season of the National Football League. During the season, Halfback Fred Gehrke painted horns on the Los Angeles Rams' helmets, making the first modern helmet emblem in pro football. The season ended when the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Chicago...
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 was the 16th NFL title game played. The game was a rematch of the previous year's championship game between the Chicago Cardinals
Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in Glendale, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, champions of the Western Division and the Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, champions of the Eastern Division. It was the first NFL championship game to be televised. In the early days of television, "snow" was a frequent problem, but in this case the snow was real. The grounds crew needed the help of players from both teams to remove the tarp from the field, because of the heavy snowfall.
Game summary
The game (also known as the Philly Blizzard) was played at Philadelphia's Shibe Park on December 19, 1948 during a significant snowstorm. Bert BellBert Bell
De Benneville "Bert" Bell was the National Football League commissioner from 1946 until his death in 1959. As commissioner, he helped chart a path for the NFL to facilitate its rise in becoming the most popular sports attraction in the United States...
, commissioner of the NFL had considered postponing the game but the players for both teams wanted to play the game. The attendance for the game was 36,309. The teams played a scoreless game until early in the fourth quarter when, after Chicago had fumbled in their own end of the field, the Eagles recovered the fumble that set up Steve Van Buren
Steve Van Buren
Stephen W. Van Buren is a former professional American football halfback who played for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League from 1944–1951, and is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.-Early life:...
's five yard touchdown at 1:05 into the fourth quarter.
This game turned out be the Cardinals' last appearance in any NFL Championship game until Super Bowl XLIII
Super Bowl XLIII
Super Bowl XLIII was an American football game pitting the American Football Conference champion Pittsburgh Steelers against the National Football Conference champion Arizona Cardinals to decide the National Football League champion for the 2008 season. The game was played on February 1, 2009,...
.
- First Quarter
- No Scoring
- Second Quarter
- No Scoring
- Third Quarter
- No scoring
- Fourth Quarter
- Phil- Van Buren 5 run (Patton kick) 7-0 PHI
