Throwback Thursday: The Championship Game That Changed It All

Well, it may not have changed it all, but it changed a lot. From 1920-31, the NFL Championship was determined by the regular season record. There was no championship game. In 1932, the Chicago Bears and the Portsmouth Spartans (today's Detroit Lions) finished the regular season tied for first. So, for the first time in NFL history a one game playoff was staged to determine the 1932 NFL Championship.

Severe weather in Chicago prevented the game from being played at Wrigley Field. So, the game was moved indoors at Chicago Stadium and played on a modified field-only 80 yards long including end zones, and 40 yards wide. As the stadium was home to the NHL Chicago Blackhawks the sidelines were right up against the hockey boards. To accommodate the shortened field new ground rules were drawn up: no field goals were allowed, and kickoffs were from the ten-yard line. Each time a team crossed midfield the ball was moved back twenty yards. It is a ridiculous stage for the first championship game, but you do what you gotta do. The Bears won on a touchdown pass from Bronko Nagurski to Red Grange. There's a nice passing combination. On the play, Nagurski took a handoff and headed towards the line. He spied a wide open Grange and fired a jump pass. Rules at the time stipulated that a forward pass had to be thrown from at least five yards behind the line of scrimmage. The Spartans argued that Nagurski didn't drop back five yards before throwing the pass. The play stood and the Bears later added a safety for a 9-0 win and the 1932 NFL Championship.

So many things changed due to this game. Until this game, the ball was placed wherever the play ended even if it was on the sideline. In 1933, the new rule required the ball to be spotted on the hashmarks most near the end of the play. The goal posts were moved from the end line to the goal line. These changes were made due to the positive impact of the forced rules needed for the smaller field in Chicago Stadium. The most significant rule change was that the forward pass became legal anywhere behind the line of scrimmage. These changes distanced the pro game from the college game so much so that the NFL stopped following the college rules. In 1933, the NFL discontinued the use of the Collegiate Rule Book and began to develop it's own rules. Finally, the excitement generated over this championship game resulted in, well, a championship game.

It's amazing that one game changed so many aspects of the professional game. It was a game that wasn't even scheduled to be played. It was an accidental game that resulted in a permanent championship game. Professional football changed because this game that wasn't supposed to be played was played on a field that it wasn't supposed to be played on.