1954 NFL season

Last updated

1954 NFL season
Regular season
DurationSeptember 26 –
December 26, 1954
East Champions Cleveland Browns
West Champions Detroit Lions
Championship Game
Champions Cleveland Browns
Usa edcp relief location map.png
Green pog.svg
Eagles
Green pog.svg
Browns
Green pog.svg
Giants
Yellow ffff80 -Green dot.png
Bears
Yellow ffff80 -Green dot.png
Cardinals ....
Green pog.svg
Steelers ....
Green pog.svg
.... Redskins
Yellow ffff00 pog.svg
Packers
Yellow ffff00 pog.svg
Lions
Yellow ffff00 pog.svg
49ers
Yellow ffff00 pog.svg
Colts
Yellow ffff00 pog.svg
Rams
NFL teams: Yellow ffff00 pog.svg West, Green pog.svg East

The 1954 NFL season was the 35th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended when the Cleveland Browns defeated the Detroit Lions in the NFL Championship Game.

Contents

Draft

The 1954 NFL draft was held on January 28, 1954, at Philadelphia's Bellevue-Stratford Hotel. With the first pick, the Cleveland Browns selected quarterback Bobby Garrett from Stanford University.

Major rule changes

Division races

In the Western Division, the 49ers pulled ahead in Week Five (October 24) with a 37–31 win over the Lions, but they lost four of their remaining seven games and finished 7–4–1.

The Lions, on the other hand, won six of their last seven, and finished 9–2–1. In the Eastern race, the Eagles got off to a 4–0 start, until dropping games to Pittsburgh (17–7) and Green Bay (37–14) to fall into a three-way tie with the Giants and Steelers. The Browns, who got off to a 1–2 start, went on an 8-game winning streak, gradually catching up with a Halloween win over New York (24–14).

A 6–0 win over Philadelphia on November 21 gave them the conference lead, and a 16–7 rematch win in New York the next week extended the margin.

The Browns' streak was ended on December 19 with a 14–10 loss to the Lions, but when the teams met in Cleveland again the next week for the Championship, the Browns beat the Lions in a 56–10 rout.

WeekWesternEastern
13 teams (Det, LA, SF)1–0–03 teams (NYG, Phi, Pit)1–0–0
23 teams (Det, LA, SF)1–0–1Tie (Phi, Pit)2–0–0
3Tie (Det, SF)2–0–1Philadelphia Eagles3–0–0
4Tie (Det, SF)3–0–1Philadelphia Eagles4–0–0
5San Francisco 49ers4–0–13 teams (NYG, PHI, PIT)4–1–0
6Tie (Det, SF)4–1–13 teams (NYG, PHI, PIT)4–2–0
7Detroit Lions5–1–0Tie (NYG, PHI)5–2–0
8Detroit Lions6–1–0New York Giants6–2–0
9Detroit Lions7–1–0Cleveland Browns6–2–0
10Detroit Lions8–1–0Cleveland Browns7–2–0
11Detroit Lions8–1–1Cleveland Browns8–2–0
12Detroit Lions8–2–1Cleveland Browns9–2–0
13 Detroit Lions 9–2–1 Cleveland Browns 9–3–0

Final standings

NFL Championship Game

Cleveland 56, Detroit 10 at Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio, December 26, 1954

League leaders

StatisticNameTeamYards
Passing Norm Van Brocklin Los Angeles2637
Rushing Joe Perry San Francisco1049
Receiving Bob Boyd Los Angeles1212

Awards

Coaching changes

References

    Other sources consulted