1946 Pittsburgh Steelers season

Last updated • 3 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

1946 Pittsburgh Steelers season
Head coach Jock Sutherland
Home field Forbes Field
Results
Record5–5–1
Division place3rd (tied) NFL Eastern
Playoff finishDid not qualify

The 1946 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the franchise's 14th season in the National Football League (NFL). The team finished the season with a record of 5–5–1. This season marked the first of two seasons played with Jock Sutherland as head coach.

Contents

Off Season Changes

When the 1945 season ended, Jock Sutherland returned from service in World War II and signed a head coaching contract with team owner Art Rooney, Sr. on December 29, 1945 in front of local reporters. Sutherland's fame as a college coach caused a great deal of excitement among Steelers fans and ticket sales for the 1946 season set records.

Additionally, fan favorite Bill Dudley was set to return for his first full season since serving in World War II. Dudley had only played in 4 games in 1945. By the end of the season, Dudley's play was so exceptional, he was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player. [1]

Regular season

Schedule

WeekDateOpponentResultRecord
1September 20 Chicago Cardinals W 14–71–0
2September 29 Washington Redskins T 14–141–0–1
3October 6 New York Giants L 14–171–1–1
4October 13 Boston Yanks W 16–72–1–1
5October 20at Green Bay Packers L 7–172–2–1
6October 27at Boston Yanks W 33–73–2–1
7November 3Washington RedskinsW 14–74–2–1
8November 10at Detroit Lions L 7–174–3–1
9November 17 Philadelphia Eagles W 10–75–3–1
10November 24at New York Giants L 0–75–4–1
11December 1at Philadelphia EaglesL 7–105–5–1

Game summaries

Week 1 (Friday September 20, 1946): Chicago Cardinals

1234Total
Cardinals00707
Steelers770014

at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 32,951
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • Pittsburgh – Seabright 8 pass from Dudley (Dudley kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Compagno 1 run (Dudley kick)
  • Chicago Cardinals – Goldberg 8 pass from Mallouf (Cuff kick)

Week 2 (Monday September 29, 1946): Washington Redskins

1234Total
Steelers0001414
Redskins770014

at Griffith Stadium, Washington, DC

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 33,620
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • Washington – Saenz 1 run (Poillon kick)
  • Washington – Todd 23 pass from Baugh (Poillon kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Jansante 17 pass from Clement (Dudley kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Dudley 1 run (Dudley kick)

Week 3 (Sunday October 6, 1946): New York Giants

1234Total
Giants0170017
Steelers007714

at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 33,702
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • New York – Hapes 2 run (Strong kick)
  • New York – Filchock 70 run (Strong kick)
  • New York – FG Strong 23
  • Pittsburgh – Garnaas 30 pass from Dudley (Dudley kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Clement 2 run (Dudley kick)

Week 4 (Sunday October 13, 1946): Boston Yanks

1234Total
Yanks00077
Steelers0160016

at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 34,297
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • Pittsburgh – Lach 1 run (kick blocked)
  • Pittsburgh – Lach 5 run (Dudley kick)
  • Pittsburgh – FG Dudley 34
  • Boston – Scollard 6 fumble run (Scollard kick)

Week 5 (Sunday October 20, 1946): Green Bay Packers

1234Total
Steelers07007
Packers0301417

at East Stadium, Green Bay, Wisconsin

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 22,588
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • Green Bay – FG Fritsch 38
  • Pittsburgh – Dudley 31 run (Dudley kick)
  • Green Bay – Luhn, 19 pass from Comp (Fritsch kick)
  • Green Bay – Schlinkman 2 run (Fritsch kick)

Week 6 (Sunday October 27, 1946): Boston Yanks

1234Total
Steelers60141333
Yanks07007

at Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 13,797
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • Pittsburgh – Condit 18 run (kick failed)
  • Boston – Dimancheff 26 pass from Governali (Scollard kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Dudley 23 lateral from Compagno (Dudley kick)
  • Pittsburgh – R. Davis 29 fumble run (Dudley kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Dudley – 80 pass from Condit (Condit kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Dutton 38 run (kick failed)

Week 7 (Sunday November 3, 1946): Washington Redskins

1234Total
Redskins00077
Steelers700714

at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 36,995
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • Pittsburgh – Dudley 80 interception (Dudley kick)
  • PIttsburgh – Lach 5 run (Dudley kick)
  • Washington – Baugh 1 run (Poillon kick)

Week 8 (Sunday November 10, 1946): Detroit Lions

1234Total
Steelers00077
Lions0100717

at Briggs Stadium, Detroit, Michigan

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 13,621
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • Detroit – FG Helms 35
  • Detroit – DeCorrevont 72 pass from Ryan (DeShane kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Dutton 12 run (Dudley kick)
  • Detroit – Greene 88 pass from Ryan (DeShane kick)

Week 9 (Sunday November 17, 1946): Philadelphia Eagles

1234Total
Eagles7701428
Steelers7147028

at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 38,882
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • Philadelphia – Zimmerman 1 run (Zimmerman kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Lach 1 run (Condit kick)
  • Pittsburgh – FG Dudley 14

Week 10 (Sunday November 24, 1946): New York Giants

1234Total
Steelers00000
Giants07007

at Polo Grounds, New York, New York

Scoring Drives:

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 45,346
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • New York – Paschal 4 run (Strong kick)

Week 11 (Sunday December 1, 1946): Philadelphia Eagles

1234Total
Steelers00707
Eagles730010

at Shibe Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 29,943
  • Referee:

Scoring Drives:

  • Philadelphia – Pritchard 58 run (Lio kick)
  • Philadelphia – FG Lio 15
  • Pittsburgh – Lach 7 run (Dudley kick)

Standings

NFL Eastern Division
WLTPCTDIVPFPASTK
New York Giants 731.7005–2–1236162W1
Philadelphia Eagles 650.5455–3231220W2
Pittsburgh Steelers 551.5004–3–1136117L2
Washington Redskins 551.5004–3–1171191L2
Boston Yanks 281.2000–7–1189273L1

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972. [2]

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References

  1. Starless: The 1947 Pittsburgh Steelers, Steve Massey, 2018
  2. 1946 Steelers at Pro Football Reference