Staley Swindle
Encyclopedia
The 1921 NFL Championship controversy, known among Buffalo sports historians and fans as the Staley Swindle, is a dispute in which the Buffalo All-Americans unintentionally surrendered the 1921 APFA Championship title to the Chicago Staleys (later renamed the Chicago Bears
). The controversy began at the conclusion of the 1921 season
, when the All-Americans finished the season with the best record in the American Professional Football Association (renamed the National Football League
in 1922). However, after losing what the All-Americans owner had intended to be an exhibition game
to the Staleys on December 4, 1921, the All-Americans lost their title to Chicago on a tiebreaker.
then challenged the All-Americans to a rematch. Buffalo owner, Frank McNeil, having already scheduled the team's last game for December 3 against the Akron Pros
, agreed on the condition that it be considered only a "post-season exhibition match" and not be counted in the standings. McNeil also made a point of telling the Buffalo media that the two games were exhibitions and would have no bearing on the team's claim to the AFPA title. He then scheduled the game against the Staleys the day after the team's final game against Akron. Therefore after a game, scheduled for December 3 against the tough Akron Pros, McNeil's team would take an all-night train to Chicago to play the Staleys the next day.
The All-Americans defeated the Pros. They then boarded a train for Chicago, worn out and in no real condition to play the Staleys. The All-Americans then lost to the Staleys, 10-7. Meanwhile McNeil still believed his team was the AFPA's 1921 champion, and even invested in tiny gold footballs for his players to commemorate the achievement. After all, at the time, Buffalo was still 9-0-2, and Chicago was still 8-1 -- a half-game behind Buffalo in the standings (Buffalo played more games earlier in the season). If the season ended that day, Buffalo would still have won the league title. Chicago, however, saw their opportunity, and swiftly scheduled two games in December: one against the Canton Bulldogs
, and the other against their crosstown rivals, the Chicago Cardinals. Winning both would have propelled Chicago to 10-1, a half-game ahead of Buffalo and assuring the team of the championship. The Staleys defeated Canton, 10-0, on December 11, but managed only to reach a scoreless tie with the Cardinals on December 18. Thus, the two teams were now tied at 9-1 (ties did not count in the APFA standings at the time).
Halas decided to declare that the title belonged to Chicago and began to persuade the other owners in the league to give his Staleys the title. Halas based his claim for the championship on his belief that the second game of the Buffalo-Chicago series mattered more than the first. He also pointed out that the aggregate score of the two games was 16-14 in favor of the Staleys. McNeil insisted that the Buffalo was the champions and maintained that the last two games his team played were merely exhibitions. (Notably, both the All-Americans and the Staleys disputed the previous year's title, but were both overruled and the Brunswick-Balke Collender Cup
went to the Akron Pros
.)
The league then instituted the first-ever tiebreaker for the championship. The new rule stated that a rematch counts more than a first matchup, which handed the championship to Chicago. This tiebreaker has since been discontinued by the NFL in favor of a more complicated set. In their decision, based on a generally accepted (but now obsolete) rule that if two teams play each other more than once in a season, the second game counts more than the first, the executive committee followed established tradition. Had Buffalo not played the last game (or if it had not been counted as per Buffalo's wishes), they would have had an undefeated season and won the title.
Meanwhile McNeil eventually went to his grave trying to get the league's decision overturned. Buffalo never again reached the level of success they did in the 1918-1921 period; the franchise barely stayed over .500 for the next three seasons, after which the team fell to the bottom of the league in the standings for most of the rest of the decade, suspending operations in 1927 and folding in 1929.
, the league disallowed it, allowed the Bulldogs to keep their title, and banned the use of postseason championship games. Incidentally, this rule would have to be overturned in , when two teams finished atop the standings and the tiebreaker did not apply. Instead, the league scheduled a "playoff game"
to settle the dispute. The NFL Championship Game would become permanent in when the NFL would divide into Eastern and Western divisions and standardize its schedule; at the same time, the "greater weight to a later game" tiebreaker was formally abolished.
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...
). The controversy began at the conclusion of the 1921 season
1921 NFL season
The 1921 APFA season was the 2nd regular season of the National Football League, which was then called the American Professional Football Association....
, when the All-Americans finished the season with the best record in the American Professional Football Association (renamed 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...
in 1922). However, after losing what the All-Americans owner had intended to be an exhibition game
Exhibition game
An exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition...
to the Staleys on December 4, 1921, the All-Americans lost their title to Chicago on a tiebreaker.
Background
The Buffalo All-Americans finished 1921 with a 9-0-2 record, meanwhile Chicago captured second-place with their only loss coming against Buffalo on Thanksgiving. The Staleys refused to play any road games that season except for their Thanksgiving game against the then-undefeated All-Americans, who also had played all of their games at home. Chicago owner George HalasGeorge 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...
then challenged the All-Americans to a rematch. Buffalo owner, Frank McNeil, having already scheduled the team's last game for December 3 against the Akron Pros
Akron Pros
The Akron Pros were a professional football team located played in Akron, Ohio from 1908–1926. The team originated in 1908 as a semi-pro team named the Akron Indians, however name was changed to the Pros in 1920 as the team set out to become a charter member of the American Professional...
, agreed on the condition that it be considered only a "post-season exhibition match" and not be counted in the standings. McNeil also made a point of telling the Buffalo media that the two games were exhibitions and would have no bearing on the team's claim to the AFPA title. He then scheduled the game against the Staleys the day after the team's final game against Akron. Therefore after a game, scheduled for December 3 against the tough Akron Pros, McNeil's team would take an all-night train to Chicago to play the Staleys the next day.
The All-Americans defeated the Pros. They then boarded a train for Chicago, worn out and in no real condition to play the Staleys. The All-Americans then lost to the Staleys, 10-7. Meanwhile McNeil still believed his team was the AFPA's 1921 champion, and even invested in tiny gold footballs for his players to commemorate the achievement. After all, at the time, Buffalo was still 9-0-2, and Chicago was still 8-1 -- a half-game behind Buffalo in the standings (Buffalo played more games earlier in the season). If the season ended that day, Buffalo would still have won the league title. Chicago, however, saw their opportunity, and swiftly scheduled two games in December: one against the Canton Bulldogs
Canton Bulldogs
The Canton Bulldogs were a professional American football team, based in Canton, Ohio. They played in the Ohio League from 1903 to 1906 and 1911 to 1919, and its successor, the National Football League, from 1920 to 1923 and again from 1925 to 1926. The Bulldogs would go on to win the 1917, 1918...
, and the other against their crosstown rivals, the Chicago Cardinals. Winning both would have propelled Chicago to 10-1, a half-game ahead of Buffalo and assuring the team of the championship. The Staleys defeated Canton, 10-0, on December 11, but managed only to reach a scoreless tie with the Cardinals on December 18. Thus, the two teams were now tied at 9-1 (ties did not count in the APFA standings at the time).
Halas decided to declare that the title belonged to Chicago and began to persuade the other owners in the league to give his Staleys the title. Halas based his claim for the championship on his belief that the second game of the Buffalo-Chicago series mattered more than the first. He also pointed out that the aggregate score of the two games was 16-14 in favor of the Staleys. McNeil insisted that the Buffalo was the champions and maintained that the last two games his team played were merely exhibitions. (Notably, both the All-Americans and the Staleys disputed the previous year's title, but were both overruled and the Brunswick-Balke Collender Cup
Brunswick-Balke Collender Cup
Brunswick-Balke Collender Cup was a silver trophy donated to the American Professional Football Association by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, Tire Division....
went to the Akron Pros
Akron Pros
The Akron Pros were a professional football team located played in Akron, Ohio from 1908–1926. The team originated in 1908 as a semi-pro team named the Akron Indians, however name was changed to the Pros in 1920 as the team set out to become a charter member of the American Professional...
.)
The league then instituted the first-ever tiebreaker for the championship. The new rule stated that a rematch counts more than a first matchup, which handed the championship to Chicago. This tiebreaker has since been discontinued by the NFL in favor of a more complicated set. In their decision, based on a generally accepted (but now obsolete) rule that if two teams play each other more than once in a season, the second game counts more than the first, the executive committee followed established tradition. Had Buffalo not played the last game (or if it had not been counted as per Buffalo's wishes), they would have had an undefeated season and won the title.
Meanwhile McNeil eventually went to his grave trying to get the league's decision overturned. Buffalo never again reached the level of success they did in the 1918-1921 period; the franchise barely stayed over .500 for the next three seasons, after which the team fell to the bottom of the league in the standings for most of the rest of the decade, suspending operations in 1927 and folding in 1929.
Long-term impact
The league was also forced to place a finite end to the season after the incident. In , when Chicago attempted to do the same thing with a post-season match against the Cleveland BulldogsCleveland Bulldogs
The Cleveland Bulldogs was a team that played in Cleveland, Ohio in the National Football League. They were originally called the Indians in 1923, not to be confused with the Cleveland Indians NFL franchise in 1922...
, the league disallowed it, allowed the Bulldogs to keep their title, and banned the use of postseason championship games. Incidentally, this rule would have to be overturned in , when two teams finished atop the standings and the tiebreaker did not apply. Instead, the league scheduled a "playoff game"
NFL Playoff Game, 1932
The 1932 NFL Playoff Game was the first ever playoff game held by the National Football League , the major professional American football sports league in the United States. Due to extremely cold weather, the game was played indoors on December 18, 1932 at Chicago Stadium in Chicago...
to settle the dispute. The NFL Championship Game would become permanent in when the NFL would divide into Eastern and Western divisions and standardize its schedule; at the same time, the "greater weight to a later game" tiebreaker was formally abolished.