1939 NFL Championship Game explained
| Type: | nflc |
| 1939 |
| Visitor: | New York Giants |
| Visitor Abbr: | NYG |
| Home: | Green Bay Packers |
| Visitor Conf: | Eastern |
| Home Conf: | Western |
| Home Abbr: | GB |
| Visitor Coach: | Steve Owen |
| Home Coach: | Curly Lambeau |
| Visitor Record: | 9–1–1 |
| Home Record: | 9–2 |
| Visitor Qtr1: | 0 |
| Visitor Qtr2: | 0 |
| Visitor Qtr3: | 0 |
| Visitor Qtr4: | 0 |
| Visitor Total: | 0 |
| Home Qtr1: | 7 |
| Home Qtr2: | 0 |
| Home Qtr3: | 10 |
| Home Qtr4: | 10 |
| Home Total: | 27 |
| Date: | December 10, |
| Stadium: | Milwaukee Mile
(State Fair Park) |
| City: | West Allis, Wisconsin |
| Attendance: | 32,379 |
| Referee: | Bill Halloran |
| Odds: | Green Bay by 10 points |
| Hofers: | Giants: Tim Mara (owner/founder), Wellington Mara (administrator), Steve Owen (coach), Mel Hein, Tuffy Leemans, Ken Strong
Packers: Curly Lambeau (coach/gm), Arnie Herber, Clarke Hinkle, Don Hutson |
The 1939 NFL Championship Game was the seventh league championship game of the National Football League (NFL), held on December 10 inside the Milwaukee Mile, located at the Wisconsin State Fair Park in West Allis, a suburb west of Milwaukee.
The New York Giants (9–1–1), the defending champions, played the Western Division champion Green Bay Packers (9–2).[1] [2] The teams had met in the previous year's title game in New York City, which the Giants won by six points, but did not play each other in the regular season.[3] For the title game in Wisconsin, the Packers were favored by ten points.[4]
The host Packers scored a touchdown in the first quarter and led 7–0 at halftime.[5] They dominated in the second half to win 27–0 and secure their fifth title—two more than any other franchise.[6] [7] [8] [9] At the time, it was the highest attended sporting event in the Milwaukee area.[10]
The "Dairy Bowl" football stadium was dedicated at halftime with the breaking of a bottle of milk. On hand were Governor Julian Heil and Mayor Daniel Hoan of Milwaukee.[11] [12]
Scoring summary
Sunday, December 10, 1939
Kickoff: 1:30 p.m. CST[4]
Statistics
| Category | New York
Giants | Green Bay
Packers |
|---|
| First downs | 7 | 10 |
| Yards gained rushing (net) | 56 | 131 |
| Forward passes attempted | 26 | 10 |
| Forward passes completed | 9 | 7 |
| Yards by forward passing | 98 | 99 |
| Yards lost, attempted forward passes | 12 | 8 |
| Yards gained, run back of intercepted passes | 27 | 39 |
| Punting average (from scrimmage) | 32 | 38 |
| Total yards all kicks returned | 98 | 35 |
| Opponents fumbles recovered | 0 | 0 |
| Yards lost by penalties | 20 | 50 | |
Source:[13] Officials
- Referee: Bill Halloran
- Umpire: Ed Cochrane
- Head Linesman: Tom Thorp
- Field Judge: Dan Tehan [3] [5]
The NFL had only four game officials in ; the back judge was added in, the line judge in, and the side judge in .
Attendance and receipts
The Packers moved the game from Green Bay to the larger metropolitan area of Milwaukee in hopes of increasing attendance; 32,379 paid to watch.[9] The gross gate receipts of $83,510.35 set a new record.[9]
The title game tickets went on sale at noon on Monday, six days before the game, in both Green Bay and Milwaukee and were nearly sold out in the first 24 hours.[14] Face value prices ranged from $1.10 to $4.40 per seat, the equivalent of $22 to $87 in 2021.[15]
Team shares
The gate was distributed as follows:
- The Packers took $23,231.06, with their 33 players each receiving $703.97.
- The Giants took $15,487.37, with their 34 players each receiving $455.57.
Source[9] [11]
Team rosters
Source:[3] [16]
External links
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Notes and References
- Web site: 1939 Green Bay Packers games . Pro-Football-Reference.com . June 10, 2024 . June 21, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170621181111/http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/gnb/1939_games.htm . live .
- Web site: 1939 New York Giants games . Pro-Football-Reference.com . June 10, 2024 . May 14, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170514144303/http://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/nyg/1939_games.htm . live .
- News: Packers meet Giants for pro title today . . Strickler . George . December 10, 1939 . 1, part 2 . June 10, 2024 . February 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170202114219/http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1939/12/10/page/35/article/packers-meet-giants-for-pro-title-today/ . live .
- News: Packers slight favorites to beat Giants . Milwaukee Sentinel . McGlynn . Stoney . December 10, 1939 . 1B . June 10, 2024 . April 24, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160424201226/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=WUNQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=KA0EAAAAIBAJ&pg=6473,1804012 . live .
- News: Packers win pro title; whip Giants, 27-0 . . Strickler . George . December 11, 1939 . 21 . June 10, 2024 . October 11, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161011200317/http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1939/12/11/page/21/article/masthead-3-no-title/ . live .
- News: Bays crush Giants in title game . Milwaukee Sentinel . McGlynn . Stoney . December 11, 1939 . 15 . December 21, 2015 . June 16, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160616224720/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=WkNQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=KA0EAAAAIBAJ&pg=6458%2C2333457 . live .
- News: Packers' power and deceptive passing game defeat Giants, 27-0 . Milwaukee Journal . Kuechle . Oliver E. . December 11, 1939 . 6, part 2 . December 21, 2015 . December 22, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222173736/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SqBQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TCIEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6506%2C4783152 . live .
- News: Pro grid reaches new heights in playoff . Pittsburgh Press . Snider . Steve . United Press . December 11, 1939 . 26 . December 21, 2015 . December 22, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222171958/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=rcsaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TEwEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6590%2C2196042 . live .
- News: Green Bay pro champs of gridiron . Reading Eagle . Pennsylvania . United Press . December 11, 1939 . 15 . December 21, 2015 . December 22, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222171423/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=LA0xAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TOEFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4019%2C2595985 . live .
- News: 32,500 to see Packers play Giants for pro title. Milwaukee Journal. Kuechle. Oliver E.. December 10, 1939. 1, sports. December 21, 2015. December 22, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151222174034/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SaBQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TCIEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6219%2C4155766. live.
- News: Packers earn $703.97 each in title triumph . . December 11, 1939 . 21 . June 10, 2024 . February 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170202113020/http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1939/12/11/page/21/article/packers-earn-703-97-each-in-title-triumph/ . live .
- News: Green Bay, wins professional football title by defeating Giants . . December 11, 1939 . 30 . June 10, 2024 . February 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170202001034/http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1939/12/11/page/30/ . live .
- News: Green Bay Packers grab pro football championship with great ease. Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. December 11, 1939. 9. December 21, 2015. December 22, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151222174511/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=pG9WAAAAIBAJ&sjid=JuQDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7045%2C3617689. live.
- News: 30,000 seats practically sold out in one day for Packer game . Milwaukee Journal . Kuechle . Oliver E. . December 5, 1939 . 6, part 2 . December 21, 2015 . December 22, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222143501/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=RKBQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TCIEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6762%2C2869785 . live .
- News: Packer-Giant tickets go on sale; then swish, they're gone . Milwaukee Sentinel . December 5, 1939 . 13 . December 21, 2015 . December 22, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222164724/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Ua4VAAAAIBAJ&sjid=KA0EAAAAIBAJ&pg=4565%2C1001491 . live .
- News: Packer and Giants team rosters . Milwaukee Sentinel . December 10, 1939 . 2B . December 21, 2015 . December 22, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222233440/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=WUNQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=KA0EAAAAIBAJ&pg=1897%2C1807732 . live .
