1932 NFL season

1932 NFL season
Regular season
Duration	September 18 – December 11, 1932
	Because the Portsmouth Spartans and the Chicago Bears finished the season tied for first place, a playoff game was held to determine the NFL champion.
Champions	Chicago Bears
	← 1931 ; NFL seasons ; 1933 →;

Last updated March 28, 2024

Braves

Dodgers

Bears

Cardinals

Packers

Giants

Spartans

Stapletons

class=notpageimage|

NFL teams

The 1932 NFL season was the 13th regular season of the National Football League. It was a year marked by a decrease in the number of franchises to just eight and the last time all teams were encompassed in a single division.

Teams

The league decreased to eight teams in 1932.

First season in NFL *	Last active season †

Team	Head coach	Stadium
Boston Braves *	Lud Wray	Braves Field
Brooklyn Dodgers	Benny Friedman	Ebbets Field
Chicago Bears	Ralph Jones	Wrigley Field
Chicago Cardinals	Jack Chevigny	Comiskey Park
Green Bay Packers	Curly Lambeau	City Stadium
New York Giants	Steve Owen	Polo Grounds
Portsmouth Spartans	George Clark	Universal Stadium
Staten Island Stapletons †	Hal Hanson	Thompson Stadium

Season history

While the Boston Braves (today's Washington Commanders) joined the NFL for the 1932 season, the loss of the Providence Steam Roller, Cleveland Indians, and Frankford Yellow Jackets reduced the league's membership to just eight teams — the fewest in NFL history. The league would again cut down to just eight teams during the 1943 NFL season due to World War II.

Teams did not play an equal number of games during the 1932 season, with the total of games played ranging from 10 (Chicago Cardinals, Boston Braves) to 14 (Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears). The other four teams in the league played a 12 game schedule.

Following the 1932 season, the NFL would be split into two divisions with the winner of each meeting at the end of the year in a Championship Playoff game.

Championship race

The Green Bay Packers were unbeaten (8–0–1) after nine games, and after the Thanksgiving weekend, their 10–1–1 record (.909) was still well ahead of Portsmouth at 5–1–4 (.833) and Chicago at 4–1–6 (.800).

In Week Twelve (December 4), the Spartans handed the Packers a 19–0 defeat, while the Bears beat the Giants 6–0. Portsmouth, at 6–1–4 (.857), took the lead, while the Packers (10–2–1) and the Bears (5–1–6) were tied for second (.833).

In Week Thirteen, the Bears hosted the Packers; a Green Bay win would have seen the Packers finish second with an 11–2–1 record (.846) and hand Portsmouth their first ever title. The Bears beat the Packers 9–0, meaning the Bears finished at 6–1–6 (.857), and were tied for first with Portsmouth.

Despite the fact that their December 18 game was referred to as a playoff, the Bears' 9–0 win over Portsmouth counted in the regular season standings: as such, while the Bears finished at 7–1–6 (.875) and won the 1932 title, it was the Packers who finished as runners-up, while the Spartans finished in third at 6–2–4 (.750).

Standings

NFL standings
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	STK
Chicago Bears ¹	7	1	6	.875	160	44	W3
Green Bay Packers	10	3	1	.769	152	63	L2
Portsmouth Spartans ¹	6	2	4	.750	116	71	L1
Boston Braves	4	4	2	.500	55	79	W2
New York Giants	4	6	2	.400	93	113	L1
Brooklyn Dodgers	3	9	0	.250	63	131	L4
Chicago Cardinals	2	6	2	.250	72	114	L5
Staten Island Stapletons	2	7	3	.222	77	173	L1

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

¹ The Bears and Spartans records include the result of the 1932 NFL Playoff Game; thus, the Spartans are ranked third behind the Packers.

Championship playoff

There was a tie for first place in the standings at the end of the 1932 regular season: as tied games did not count until 1972, the Portsmouth Spartans record of 6–1–4 and the Bears record of 6–1–6 were taken to be six wins, one loss, giving both teams an .857 win percentage.

Had pure win–loss differential or the current (post-1972) system of counting ties as half a win, half a loss been in place in 1932, the Packers' record of 10–3–1 (.750, +7) would have won them a fourth consecutive championship, ahead of the Spartans' 6–1–4 (.727, +5) and the Bears' 6–1–6 (.692, +5).

Since both games between the Bears and Spartans had ended in ties, the NFL arranged for a playoff game to decide the NFL championship, the first ever game of its kind.

Extremely cold weather forced the game to be moved from Wrigley Field to the indoor Chicago Stadium: as the makeshift football field in the stadium was only 80 yards long with undersized endzones, officials moved the goal posts to the goal line due to a lack of space to put them at the back of the end zone, as was standard in college and professional football. This change was favored by players and fans, and the goal posts were moved to the goal line as one of several rule changes the league made in 1933, with the rule lasting until 1973.

The Bears won the playoff game 9–0, which was scoreless until the fourth quarter. Since the playoff game counted in the final standings, the Spartans finished the season in third place behind runners-up Green Bay.

1932 NFL Playoff, Portsmouth Spartans at Chicago Bears

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Spartans	0	0	0	0	0
Bears	0	0	0	9	9

at Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois

Date: December 18
Game time: 8:15 p.m. CST
Game weather: Indoors
Game attendance: 11,198
Referee: Bobby Cahn
Boxscore

Game information

Fourth quarter

CHB Red Grange 2 yard pass from Bronko Nagurski (Paul Engebretsen kick)
CHB Safety, Mule Wilson tackled in end zone

Statistical leaders

The 1932 season marked a major landmark for the National Football League — the first year in which official statistics were tracked and retained.^[1] During this first foray into official record-keeping, certain statistics later regarded as staples were not maintained. These included interceptions, punting average, kickoff return yardage and average, and field goal percentage, among others.^[1]

	Name	Team	Yards
Passing	1. Arnie "Flash" Heber	Green Bay Packers	639
	2. Walt Holmer	Chicago Bears	449
	3. Jack McBride	New York Giants	363
Rushing	1. Cliff Battles	Boston Braves	606
	2. Bronco Nagurski	Chicago Bears	573
	3. Bob Campiglio	Staten Island Stapletons	524
Receiving	1. Ray Flaherty	New York Giants	350
	2. Luke Johnsos	Chicago Bears	321
	3. Harry Ebding	Portsmouth Spartans	171
Touchdowns	1. Red Grange	Chicago Bears	7
	2. Dutch Clark	Portsmouth Spartans	6
	3. Jack Grossman	Brooklyn Dodgers	5
	3. Ray Flaherty	New York Giants	5

Source: Pete Palmer, et al. (eds.), The ESPN Pro Football Encyclopedia. First Edition. New York: Sterling Publishing, 2006; p. 1040.

Related Research Articles

The Portsmouth Spartans were a professional American football team that played in Portsmouth, Ohio from their founding in 1928 to their relocation to Detroit in 1934. Originally drawing players from defunct independent professional and semi-professional teams, they joined the fledgling National Football League (NFL) in 1930. Their home stadium was Universal Stadium.

Throughout its history, the National Football League (NFL) and other rival American football leagues have used several different formats to determine their league champions, including a period of inter-league matchups to determine a true national champion.

The 1929 NFL Season was the tenth regular season of the National Football League. The league increased back to 12 teams with the addition of the Staten Island Stapletons, Orange Tornadoes and Minneapolis Red Jackets and the re-entry of the Buffalo Bisons. The Pottsville Maroons became the Boston Bulldogs, the New York Yankees folded, and the Detroit Wolverines merged into the New York Giants, with the Giants the surviving partner.

The 1930 NFL season was the 11th regular season of the National Football League.

The 1931 NFL season was the 12th regular season of the National Football League. The league decreased to 10 teams due to financial hardships caused by the Great Depression: while the Cleveland Indians joined as an expansion team and the league lost the Minneapolis Red Jackets and the Newark Tornadoes, the Frankford Yellow Jackets folded midway through the season.

The 1932 NFL Playoff Game was an extra game held to break a tie in the 1932 season's final standings in the National Football League (NFL); it matched the host Chicago Bears and the Portsmouth Spartans. Because of snowfall and anticipated extremely cold temperatures in Chicago, Illinois, it was moved indoors and played at the three-year-old Chicago Stadium on December 18 on a reduced-size field on Sunday night.

The 1933 NFL season was the 14th regular season of the National Football League.

The 1935 NFL season was the 16th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with the Detroit Lions' 26–7 victory over the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.

The 1939 NFL season was the 20th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, NFL president Joseph Carr died, and Carl Storck was named to replace him.

The 1941 NFL season was the 22nd regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, Elmer Layden was named the first Commissioner of the NFL, while Carl Storck resigned as league president. Layden also took on the duties of president and signed a five-year contract at $20,000 annually.

The 1943 NFL season was the 24th regular season of the National Football League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1932 Chicago Bears season</span> NFL team season

The 1932 season was the Chicago Bears' 13th in the National Football League. The team was able to improve on their 9–4–1 record from 1931 and finished with a 7–1–6 record under third-year head coach Ralph Jones.

The 1933 season was the Chicago Bears' 14th in the National Football League and the 11th season under head coach George Halas. The team was able to improve on their 7–1–6 record from 1932 and finished with a 10–2–1 record.

The Bears–Packers rivalry is a National Football League (NFL) rivalry between the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers. The two teams have a combined 70 members in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, have won a combined 22 NFL championships, and includes five Super Bowl championships. They hold the top two spots for most wins all-time; the Bears had the record from 1921 until 2022, when the Packers took over in a game between the two teams, who were tied at 786 wins going into the game.

The Boston Braves finished their inaugural 1932 season with a record of four wins, four losses, and two ties, and finished in fourth place in the National Football League (NFL).

The 1932 Green Bay Packers season was their 14th season overall and their 12th in the National Football League. The team finished with a 10–3–1 record under founder and head coach Curly Lambeau, earning them a second-place finish despite winning three more games than the champion Chicago Bears. With only one loss, the Bears' winning percentage was calculated by the league at .875, as ties were discarded, compared to the Packers' .769.

In 1932, the Portsmouth Spartans appeared in the league championship game, the first playoff game in NFL history, losing to the Chicago Bears 9–0. With a record of 6–1–4 in 1932, the Spartans finished in a tie for the NFL title with the Chicago Bears. It was the first time in history that the season ended with two teams atop the league's standings. Both games during the season between Portsmouth and Chicago had ended in ties; to determine a sole champion, the league office arranged for the first playoff game in NFL history.

The 1932 Chicago Cardinals season was their 13th in the league. The team failed to improve on their previous year's 5–4 record, winning only two games. This was the last NFL season without a scheduled postseason or divisions.

The Bears–Lions rivalry is a National Football League (NFL) rivalry between the Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions. The franchises first met in 1930 when the Lions were known as the Portsmouth Spartans and based in Portsmouth, Ohio. They moved to Detroit for the 1934 season. The Bears and Lions have been division rivals since 1933 and have usually met twice a season since the Lions franchise began. The two teams play in the two largest metropolitan areas in the Midwest. Chicago and Detroit's home stadiums, Soldier Field and Ford Field, are 280 miles apart and both are easily accessible from I-94. This rivalry is the longest-running annual series in the NFL as both teams have met at least once a season since 1930.

References

1 2 Pete Palmer, et al. (eds.), The ESPN Pro Football Encyclopedia. First Edition. New York: Sterling Publishing, 2006; p. 1040.