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 last regular season game played on Wednesday until the 2012 season happen during the 1948 season. The season ended when the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Chicago Cardinals in the NFL Championship Game.

The 1948 season featured the highest per-game, per-team scoring in NFL history, with the average team scoring 23.2 points per game.^[1]

Major rule changes

• Plastic helmets are prohibited. This rule was enacted because critics argued that they were being used more as a weapon than protection.
• A flexible artificial tee is permitted at the kickoff.
• When the intended passer is tackled behind the line of scrimmage, the game clock will stop temporarily until any receivers who have gone down field have had a reasonable time to return.
• When the offense is called for delay of game, the defense may decline the 5-yard distance penalty.
• If a foul occurs behind the line during a backwards pass or fumble, the penalty is enforced from the spot of the pass or fumble.
• It is illegal to bat or punch the ball while it is in a player's possession.
• All officials are equipped with whistles, not horns.

Division Races

In the Eastern race, the Eagles beat Washington 45–0 in Week Five to take a 1/2 game lead. When the 6–1–1 Eagles met the 6–2 Skins again in Week Ten, Washington lost a must-win game, 42–21.

The other race was all Chicago, as the Cardinals and Bears both had records of 10–1 going into the final week. A record crowd of 51,283 packed Wrigley Field on December 12 to watch. The Bears took a 21–10 lead, on George Gulyanic's as the fourth quarter began. Charley Trippi's touchdown cut the margin to 21–17, but the Bears had the ball and time on their side. The turning point came when the Cards' Vince Banonis picked off a pass from Johnny Lujack, and ran the ball back to the Bears' 19, and Elmer Angsman scored the winning touchdown three plays later for the Western Division title and the trip to the championship.^[2]

Final standings

W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT= Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against

Note: The NFL did not officially count tie games in the standings until 1972

NFL Championship Game

Philadelphia 7, Chi. Cardinals 0 in a blizzard at Shibe Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, December 19, 1948

References

• NFL Record and Fact Book (ISBN 1-932994-36-X)
• NFL History 1941-1950 (Last accessed December 4, 2005)
• 1948 season in details
• Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League (ISBN 0-06-270174-6)