TUESDAY TIDBITS: "It Was Won Yesterday in Philadelphia"

By TJ Troup 

So much is written online about the games in the NFL each week; and there are some statements that are not only valuable, they are intriguing. Where to begin? Historically, when a team is at least 9 games over .500 and ahead by at least 20 points, they have won 161 times without a loss until last Sunday! 

Who could lead such a comeback? Why none other than the reigning MVP Mr. Josh Allen! His teammates rallied around him, thus securing a decisive road victory. ESPN analytics state that Buffalo now has the 5th-best chance to win the Silver Trophy. 

Alright, all my ardent readers and knowledgeable fans out there; please share the handful of teams right now that actually have a chance to hoist the Lombardi Trophy and why? There are times the schedule makers just get it right, and in two days we have a dandy in the Pacific Northwest as the Rams journey to Seattle. The Seahawks have won 26 of the last 47 times these teams have battled. Rams are 14-10 at home, but only 7-16 on the road. Who wins, and how do they get it done? The Eagles returned to playing physical football last Sunday on that new jv team from Las Vegas. We have to go back to December 4th, 1955 to find the last time the Eagles allowed so few offensive yards by an opponent. 

Philadelphia in '55 was not very consistent yet on this December Sunda,y the Cardinals gained just 61 yards passing, but lost 60 yards in sacks, while gaining just 48 yards rushing on 24 attempts. The Philadelphia defense that day was led by their two Pro Bowl defenders; linebacker Wayne Robinson & right defensive end Norm "Wild Man" Willey. Since the Eagles were mentioned; lets journey back 78 years today (by this time you all know history of the game is a joy for me). Either Washington or New York have won every division title in the Eastern Conference from 1933 through 1946 until '47. Philadelphia will go on to play in three consecutive championship games, but their first playoff game in team history is brought about due to a tie for the division crown. 

Johnny "Zero" Clement

How did these Pennsylvania teams get there you ask? Well, here goes. Since Dudley is traded to Detroit, and 14 rookies make the Steeler roster coach Sutherland has an opportunity to show he really can teach/coach this game, and his brand of single wing football. Leading the offense is tailback Johnny "Zero" Clement, and boy oh boy is he productive, effective, and clutch in moving the black & gold down the field. He finishes 5th in the passer rating category! Two guys named Luckman & Baugh are ahead of him. 

When he injures his right arm he is "replaced" in the line-up by rookies Walt Slater & Gonzo Morales. While both give maximum effort, they just cannot do what Johnny Zero could do. Pittsburgh at one point wins six straight during the year including a strong victory over the Eagles. The 6-2 Steeler defense is led by ten year veteran Chuck Cherundolo (born before Pershing is winning the Great War in Europe). 

The Eagles win the rematch late in the year as they have the best running back of his era in Steve Van Buren who gains over 1,000 rushing! The passing attack is led by quarterback Tommy Thompson who is one of the men who finishes ahead of Clement in the passer rating category. The Eagles punished the Steeler defense in their victory by gaining 219 yards rushing; and Doc Sutherland is not about to let that happen again. 

Al Wistert

The day before the game in a team meeting, every Eagle has a chance to speak, thus the title for today's saga comes from Captain Al Wistert. The Eagles are ready and Forbes field is packed (35,729) for the deciding game, but Pittsburgh has to punt the first two times they have possession. That second punt is blocked by the rookie end Pete Pihos (he has done this before, ask Sammy Baugh), and the ball bounces out of bounds. The Steeler defense is packed inside; thus Thompson flips a flare pass to Van Buren to the left and "Supersonic Steve" dashes 15 yards to score. 

Hall of Fame coach Earle "Greasy" Neale resorts to trickery during the game on a fake field goal with holder Allie Sherman throwing incomplete to Ferrante, but during the 2nd quarter Thompson zips a pass to Black Jack Ferrante between the two linebackers and away he goes with right corner Tony Compagno in hot pursuit. Compagno is joined by left corner Paul White and they are carried into the end zone on the 28-yard score. 

Just before the half, Clement finally breaks free on a 27-yard run, but the Steelers still cannot find paydirt. Pittsburgh punts in the 3rd quarter to Bosh Pritchard and the elusive halfback weaves, cuts, and sprints 79 yards to put the game away. Clement has his right elbow in a brace, and is rusty after a couple weeks on the sideline thus he completes only 4 of 16 for 52 yards. 

The rushing champion is bottled up as Van Buren gains just 45 yards on 18 carries (his long run is 9 yards), yet Thompson is decisive & accurate as he pinpoints 11 of 17 for 131 yards. Would be fun to see these two teams battle each other for the Silver Trophy this season, but doubtful that will happen?

Bo Nix Sizzles in Win Over Green Bay

 By Eric Goska

Neither Xavier McKinney (above) nor
any other Packer could intercept Bo Nix
Sunday at Empower Field at Mile High.
(photos by Eric Goska)

Four touchdown passes and no interceptions beats four field goals and no misses any day of the week.

The flick of an arm, not the swing of a leg, carried the day at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday. That the Broncos reached the end zone while the Packers split the uprights allowed Denver to soar past Green Bay 34-26 and register an 11th straight win.

In a game featuring top-tier defenses, Bo Nix shredded Green Bay’s. The second-year player completed 23 of 34 passes for 302 yards and four touchdowns while compiling a passer rating of 134.7, the highest allowed by the Packers this season.

Nix fired scoring passes on his 8th, 12th, 18th and 25th pass attempts. He threw 18 passes during that run, posting a rating of 149.8.

The second-year phenom connected on 13 passes of 10 or more yards. His throws brought home 16 first downs.

Not once was he sacked.

For Green Bay, Brandon McManus booted field goals of 53, 26, 35 and 37 yards without a miss. His four-for-four performance was his first as a Packer.

Brandon McManus didn't miss in Denver.

But repeatedly trotting out McManus meant Green Bay underwhelmed in the red zone producing just one touchdown in four trips there. Denver was a perfect four-of-four.

Given a choice between a can’t-miss kicker or a lights-out quarterback, always go with the hot hand.

Nix became the 13th player this season to launch four or more scoring passes with no interceptions. Like the others – with the exception of one outing by Patrick Mahomes – he came away a winner.

Throughout its history, Green Bay has wilted on the road when confronted by a quarterback who can sling four TD passes and not get picked. Nix became the ninth to do it and the first since Jameis Winston uncorked five in New Orleans’ 38-3 demolition of the Packers to start the 2021 season.

Nix inflicted the most damage during the heart of the game. During the second and third quarters combined, he completed 16 of 22 passes for 237 yards and four scores (147.2 rating).

Not surprisingly, Denver piled up 289 of its 391 yards and 16 of 21 first downs during those two periods. The yardage is the most Green Bay has allowed in consecutive quarters in one game all season.

The 25-year-old romped on second down. He completed 10 of 13 throws for 161 yards and three scores (157.4 rating).

Nix utilized four different receivers – Michael Bandy, Lil’Jordan Humphrey, Courtland Sutton and Troy Franklin – to reach the end zone.  Franklin’s grab on the last play of the third quarter put Denver ahead for good.

Franklin’s touchdown could have been prevented had Xavier McKinney intercepted Nix on the drive. The veteran defensive back had two opportunities – one on a pass intended for Evan Engram on the second play of the advance and one on a deep ball for Marvin Mims Jr. three plays later – but came up short both times.

That Nix riddled Green Bay even with Micah Parsons, on the field, was disconcerting. That the Packers will be without their top defensive player for the remainder of the season – Parsons tore his ACL two plays before Nix orchestrated his final TD throw – is cause for alarm.

In the next two weeks, Green Bay will face Chicago’s Caleb Williams and Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson. Both quarterbacks have already thrown four TD passes with no interceptions in victory this season. Both would like nothing more than to duplicate their efforts against a Packers team that lost more than a game in Denver.

Take Cover
The nine QBs who threw 4 or more TD passes and no interceptions against a Packers team on the road.

Name                      A-C-Yds-TD      Rate    Team          Date                   Result
Tommy Kramer         25-16-241-6       135.2     Vikings        Sept. 28, 1986    GB lost, 7-42
Chad Pennington     24-17-196-4        134.7     Jets              Dec. 29, 2002      GB lost, 17-42
Peyton Manning      40-28-393-5       140.9     Colts            Sept. 26, 2004    GB lost, 31-45
Donovan McNabb   43-32-464-5       147.8     Eagles         Dec. 5, 2004        GB lost, 17-47
Drew Brees                26-20-323-4      157.5     Saints          Nov. 24, 2008     GB lost, 29-51
Marcus Mariota        26-19-295-4      149.8     Titans          Nov. 13, 2016     GB lost, 25-47
Cam Newton             31-20-242-4      128.0     Panthers     Dec. 17, 2017      GB lost, 24-31
Jameis Winston        20-14-148-5      130.8     Saints          Sept. 12, 2021    GB lost, 3-38
Bo Nix                         34-23-302-4     134.7     Broncos       Dec. 14, 2025     GB lost, 26-34

Remembering Bobby Ply's 1962 Season

by Jeffrey J. Miller

Bobby Ply, 1965

The recent play of Buffalo Bills cornerback Christian Benford in which he scored defensive touchdowns in back-to-back games (a fumble return versus Pittsburgh on November 30 followed by an interception return against Cincinnati on December 7) was an outstanding accomplishment.  My good friend and colleague Terence Jon Troup tells me that players scoring defensive touchdowns in back-to-back weeks is extremely rare. We could only identify five other players since 1940 who have accomplished the feat, including four Hall-of-Famers in Tom Landry (1951), Dick Lane (1952), Herb Adderley (1965) and Ken Houston (1971). Benford is in exceptionally good company, indeed!

Buffalo's DB Christian Benford returning an intercepted
 Joe Burrow pass for a touchdown at Highmark Stadium,
December 7, 2025 

Benford’s exploits brought my mind back to a moment in time I had referenced in a Pro Football Journal article a few years ago.  In one of my “AFL Defensive Players of the Week” series of articles, I spotlighted a two-week performance by a little-known Dallas Texan defensive back named Bobby Ply. It inspired me to turn the spotlight back on Mr. Ply, who in back-to-back games right around this very time in December of 1962, pilfered a record seven (yes, 7!) enemy aerials.

 

Ply had been a college quarterback and safety at Baylor.  He led the Bears to the Gator Bowl in 1960, where he earned co-MVP honors in a 13-12 loss to Florida, completing a then-record 13 passes in the game.  The New York Titans tapped him with their fifth-round pick (37th overall) but traded him to the Texans a few weeks later. The NFL Pittsburgh Steelers selected Ply using their 16th-round pick (216th overall) but knowing his chances of even making the Steelers’ active roster were slim, made for an easy decision to go with the AFL team. 

 

The Texans intended to use Ply on the defensive side of the ball, but they already had two outstanding first-string rearguards in Johnny Robinson (the future Hall-of-Famer) and Bobby Hunt. Undeterred, Ply forged a spot for himself as the third safety and special teamer. But when Robinson was knocked out of the lineup with a late-season injury, Ply was ready to fill the void.  Ply’s first start came in Game 12 (December 2) against the Buffalo Bills, a 23-14 loss. 

 

He started again a week later (December 9) when the Texans faced off against the Denver Broncos at the Cotton Bowl. Ply had a huge game, recording three interceptions in leading the Texans to a 17-10 victory.  His interceptions of Denver passes on back-to-back drives in the fourth quarter sealed the win that bumped the playoff-bound Texans’ season record to 10-3.

 

Ply made a third straight start in the season finale against the San Diego Chargers (December 16), and not only did the heroics continue, he was even better!  After swiping three passes the previous week, Ply nabbed four against the Chargers, which tied the pro individual record for interceptions in a single game. The total of seven interceptions in successive games, however, is an individual record that stands to this very day.

 

Del Rio (TX) News-Herald,
December 17, 1962.

Despite the records, Ply found himself back on the bench the following week as Robinson returned to the lineup for the AFL Title Game between the Texans and Houston Oilers. The Texans prevailed, winning the league championship with a historic 20-17 double-overtime victory. That made for one incredible three-week stretch for Bobby Ply.

 

Unfortunately, Ply would never come close to recapturing the dizzying heights he reached in early December 1962. In fact, in the six years of professional football he was destined to play, Ply never appeared in an All-Star game or received an All-Pro mention. He started just 16 of the 77 games he played.  What makes Ply’s feat all-the-more curious is the fact that these seven picks were his total for the entire 1962 season, and he would record only two more the rest of his career!

 

So, even though no one would ever mistake Bobby Ply for teammate Johnny Robinson, for one glorious stretch during the 1962 campaign, Ply sure looked like it was he, rather than Robinson, who was destined for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

TUESDAY TIDBITS: The Day of the Halfback

By TJ Troup 

There are eight teams in the AFC with a winning record, and nine teams in the NFC. The home stretch is about to begin with not only some very tight and competitive division races, but also the possible tie breakers for "wild card" berths. 

No doubt compelling drama awaits us and as such stocked up on smokehouse almonds and Dr. Pepper this week. The 2025 season is one of many where we have had teams fighting to earn a division title, and today we are going to go back 60 years for the day of the halfback! 

Don Shula's BALTIMORE Colts surprised many folks by winning the Western Conference title in 1964; could he continue to keep the Colts on top? Vince Lombardi has finished second back-to-back seasons; will he be able to get his Fox River studs back to the top? 

Finally, the strong showing of Minnesota in '64 has Viking fans talking of being in the race? Would there be a surprise team in the Western Conference in 1965? After six weeks, the Colts are 5-1 with their only loss to a revitalized Packer team, and that team is back where St. Vince wants them ... ON TOP! 

Many times the George Halas Chicago Bears have started a season slowly, then caught fire (1949, 1955, and 1959) only to fall short. The Bears begin the '65 campaign 0-3 and have allowed 105 points. The Bear pass defense has been scorched! Has George Allen lost his touch since the Bears defensive passer rating is an abysmal 114.0! 

Chicago rebounds to win three straight and continues to play strong football as they beat the Packers in Wrigley Field 31-10. After twelve weeks, Chicago has clawed their way into the race and stands 8-4 after shouting out the Colts in Baltimore. There is no doubt Halas would not intentionally want to help the Lombardi Packers, yet that is exactly what has happened since Johnny Hightops is injured in the loss to the Bears. Gary Cuozzo is considered a quality back-up, but he is not John Unitas; but who is? 

Lombardi takes his team to Baltimore, where he has won 2 and lost 4 for the showdown. The foggy day just adds to the drama as the score is 14-13 in favor of Green Bay just before the half. Paul Hornung has reached back in time and re-discovered his big game, and big play ability as he has scored twice once on a run, and once on a pass reception when he read the Colt blitz (we called this the "hot call" in my coaching days)and heads up the left sideline to take Starr's pass for 50 yards and a touchdown. Left corner Bobby Boyd returned Jim Taylor's fumble to the Packers three-yard line. Cuozzo attempts to toss a flare pass to Jerry Hill on the right side, but leaping up to intercept is left linebacker Dave Robinson. 

Credit: Walter Iooss 

The photo of Robinson leaping in the air to pilfer the pigskin is eye-popping, and away Dave goes ... 87 yards before he his hauled down by Lenny Moore. Starr completes to Dowler to add to the Packer lead 21-13. Hornung entered the game having gained 190 yards on 47 carries in the 10 games he has played in (missed both Minnesota games), and in the first half today, 9 carries for 41 yards. The 3rd quarter is all Green Bay as the "Golden Boy" scores twice more on the ground, and then his biggest play as he takes a Starr toss in the 4th quarter, 65 yards to score his 5th touchdown (this is the only game in Paul Hornung's career where he gains over 100 yards receiving)! 

Through the first three quarters, Cuozzo completed 9 of 20 for just 84 yards, and when he was hit hard, Tom Matte replaced him at the triggerman position and struggled with his accuracy as safety Tom Brown of the Packers made a key interception. Cuozzo returns to fill the damp foggy air with passes as he completes 11 of 18 in the 4th quarter for 128 yards. The Packer victory gives them a record of 10-3, with the Colts right behind at 9-3-1. The final weekend will decide which of these two teams will represent the West, right? Oh, there is another team that has a chance? 

If the Bears win their last two, and both the Packers & Colts lose, the Bears will have a special play-off game with Green Bay. First things first, though, the Bears have to beat San Francisco on this 12th day of December, 1965. From 1961 through 1964 only four teams in the NFL scored over 400 points in a season, and all four were playoff teams. Today at Wrigley the high-powered 49ers who scored 52 on opening day against the Bears can squelch all Chicago hopes with a victory. 

Watching the "NFL Play by Play" report with Jim Gibbons detailing the action of these two teams that have had many hard-fought games is a joy. Chicago has won 16 and San Francisco 14 in the sixteen-year rivalry. Rookie Gale Sayers of the Bears has captured the imagination of many with his ability to break away and score all season, and in the first quarter, the "Kansas Comet" rockets 80 yard with a screen pass to put the Bears on the scoreboard. Later in the quarter Rudy "The Rifle" Bukich leads tight end Mike Ditka perfectly and the burly Bear latches onto the ball one-handed and falls in the end zone to score. Where were the 49er safeties? 

Gale Sayers

John Brodie has had a magnificent year delivering strikes to split end Dave Parks, and they engineer a 78-yard drive with Parks easily beating Whitsell on an out pattern to score from the nine. Chicago is positioned on the San Francisco twenty-one after a Jon Arnett 77-yard kickoff return! The mud does not limit Sayers's ability to explode as he scampers 21 yards to score on a trap left. San Francisco responds with another impressive drive culminating in a John David Crow 15-yard touchdown reception. The Niners are back in the game down 20 to 13. 

John Brodie

Can the Bears mount a drive right before the half? You betcha! and at 14:28 Sayers sweeps right for 7 yards and a touchdown. The 3rd quarter is more of the rookie sensation at his best as he dashes 50 yards to score on an off tackle play to the right, and then scores later in the quarter as he catapults over the line from the one. Chicago 40 San Francisco 13. After a 49er touchdown, the Bears drive 76 yards as Bukich zips an 8 yard pass to Jim Jones (another Bear rookie). 

San Francisco must punt as Davis booms the ball to Sayers on his own fifteen. There have been many long scoring plays in NFL history, yet when you watch Sayers cut left in the mud is breathtaking. Six touchdowns, yes, not a misprint -- SIX! During the game Jon Arnett carries the ball more than Gale does, yet Sayers goes over the 100-yard mark for the third time. Sayers watches from the sideline as Arnett scores the final Bear touchdown. 

Chicago gained 298 yards in total offense in the first half, and while they could not exceed that output in the second half finishing with 584 is just damn impressive. Halas did send Sayers back in the game one last time, and when Davis punts on the final play imagine the Bear fans hoping he could do it one more time. He has already gained 306 yards rushing, receiving, and on punt returns, but he only goes 30 as the gun sounds. Mentioned earlier in the saga that the Allen defense had played very poor pass defense those first three games; well the final eleven of the year the Bears had a defensive passer rating of 49-27! 

We all know what transpired the final weekend of the season as the gutty Colt victory on Saturday afternoon in the Coliseum against the Rams eliminated the Bears. San Francisco continued to battle and managed a tie with the Packers, setting up another legendary game, but that is a story for another day?

OTD: 100th Anniversary Red Grange-Chicago Bears Tour: Washington Game

LOOKING BACK

By Chris Willis

The Grange-Bears tour finally left New York. It headed south to the nation’s capital.

After a day off the Grange-Bears tour was back on the field, but only after an impromptu visit to the White House. On the morning of the game, Red got a unique request. Illinois Senator William McKinley, who was a graduate of Illinois and had seen many Illini home football games of Red’s, and William Holaday, a U.S. House of Representative from Illinois (who also played a little college football at Penn College and Missouri) and who received his Law Degree from Illinois, invited the redhead to the White House to meet President Calvin Coolidge. Red quickly said yes. Joining Red would be George Halas, “Doc” Coolley, and Byron Moore. Red, dressed in a dark winter overcoat with quarter-size buttons, a fedora, a suit and tie with a striped scarf around his neck, wanted to look like an average twenty-two-year-old. He allowed his good friend Coolley to wear his trademark raccoon fur coat. 

The foursome was picked up by the Senator and transported from the Lee House to the White House. After posing for a few photos outside the famous building the whole group went inside. Red recalled meeting the President: “I remember our game in Washington very well. Senator McKinley called George Halas and asked us if we’d like to meet the President. And, of course, we were flattered and thrilled to have the opportunity to meet President Coolidge And the Senator picked us up and took us to the White House. And I remember so well as if it was yesterday. He said ‘Mr. President, this is George Halas and Red Grange with the Chicago Bears.’ I remember President Coolidge saying, ‘Young men, I’m very happy to meet you, I always did like animal acts.”

A few minutes later the entire group left the White House. In newspapers across the country, it was reported that Red had meet the President. In every article it just mentioned that he briefly met Coolidge, who shook his hand, asked him “where he was from?” and wished him good luck. 

It was obvious that the President didn’t know who Red was, since he had to ask where he was from. Most sports fans and citizens knew that the redhead was from Wheaton. This meeting became a banquet story told by Red and Halas for decades. 

Now it was onto the game. The Washington game was set up between Pyle and local sports promoter Al Stern who agreed to give “Cash-and-Carry” 60 percent of the gate. 

ickets were sold for $2.50 (general admission), $3.85 (grandstands) and $5.50 (box seats) at Griffith Stadium and Spalding’s Sporting Goods. 

Stern and Pyle also agreed to offer five thousand tickets at $1.00 to prep, high school and college fans. 

Advertisements in the local papers announced, “Red Grange at Griffith Stadium,” with no mention of the Chicago Bears or the Washington All-Stars.

   

As for the team Stern organized it was a rather rough and tough group of players. Because of the haste Stern was able to only sign a few quality pro football players, including Jack Hagerty, a former Georgetown star who played for the New York Giants (1926-1932), fullback Roy Mackert (Maryland), halfbacks Ira McKee (Navy) and Les Hawes (Dartmouth) who also played for the Frankford Yellow Jackets. 

Most of the roster was semi-pro players from the area. “I honestly believe that we’ll give the Bears a real battle,” shouted Ira McKee with confidence.

The Bears were starting to feel the strain of playing several games in a row as tackle Ed Healey and center George Trafton would sit out with nagging knee injuries. But Red would put in his allotted time to please the fans. Most contracts drawn up by Pyle had him obligated to play at least 25 minutes. In the press box would be the usual suspects of Peglar, MacNamara, and Frick, but this time they would be joined by local writers Ross Conklin of the Washington Times, Frank Young and Walter Haight of the Washington Post, as well as Arthur Chamberlin of the New York World Service. 

The crowd was very disappointing for both teams. It also didn’t help that the game was scheduled on a Tuesday afternoon (2:00 p.m. kickoff). Newspapers announced as many as 15,000 and as low as 5,000, but the crowd most likely was 5,000. Most spectators sat in the cheap seats paying $1.00 in the southeast corner of Griffith Stadium. The first half became a slug-fest with no scoring. Red did nothing to separate himself from the other players. “When he retired early in the second quarter, probably for the first time in his young life he was greeted with several raspberries,” wrote the Washington Post. The Bears then suddenly started to make some plays in the second half this time on defense as Duke Hanny (30 yards) and Johnny Bryan (65 yards) returned interceptions for touchdowns. The game ended with Dutch Sternaman and Washington guard Nick Busch staging a boxing match on the field- both were ejected by referee Harmon. The Bears won 19-0.

Red struggled mightily against the Washington team. The Washington Post credited Red with 11 carries for just 8 yards; 0 for 3 on passes, no punt returners, 3 tackles on defense and made one of two extra-point kicks. 

The local press wasn’t kind to the redhead. Ross Conklin of the Washington Times wrote “Red Shows Nothing Here: Other Players Far Outshine Chicago Bears’ Big Drawing Card,” and called him a “bust.” Walter Haight of the Washington Post wrote “Red a Sheep in Bear’s Clothing: Merely ‘Puts in Time’”. The Post recap had three photos, including an image of Red being tackled hard and one sitting on the bench in between Jim McMillian and Don Murry. Frank Young, also of the Post, wrote about the prospects of pro football in Washington: “True, Grange himself proved quite a disappointment when the game actually staged, but fans could not anticipate this in advance and the fact that such a small number showed up, proves conclusively that, no matter what the attraction, as long as it is pro football, Washington fans are not interested.” 

 The Grange tour had proved that the pro football was a game that could entertain and be a business- games in Chicago, Philadelphia and New York proved that. The Nation’s Capital would be slow in recognizing the popularity of the pro game. Not ever stop on the tour would spread the NFL’s propaganda. Washington wouldn’t embrace the NFL until 1937 when the Redskins arrived in town. Maybe if the game was played on the weekend like the other big cities the crowd would’ve been bigger. After the game Al Stern reported that Red and company collected $6,752.52 while the gate brought in between $11,000 and $12,000. He claimed he broke even. As for Red he was beat up. Not only was he dead tired he had suffered a bruised nose, a badly hurt mouth and a wrenched left arm. At 7:00 p.m. the tour boarded another train to head back north for Boston.

Packers Fend Off Bears at Lambeau Field

 By Eric Goska

Mooove over Bears, the Packers are in first place!
(photos by Eric Goska)

Packers fans, you can exhale now.

But don’t get complacent. That rampaging Bear your team just encountered isn’t going into hibernation anytime soon.

Pushed to the limit by its longtime rival, Green Bay withstood every blow to register a 28-21 win over Chicago Sunday at Lambeau Field. The victory moved the Packers (9-3-1) into first place in the NFC North Division ahead of the Bears (9-4).

For you doubters out there, know this: the Monsters of the Midway are for real. Only an interception in the red zone with 22 seconds left ended the threat they presented, a looming menace that seemed to gain strength with every offensive snap.

Restricted to 19 plays in the first half, Chicago launched 40 after the break. Held to 71 yards in the opening two quarters, the Bears amassed 244 in the final 30 minutes.

Having punted four times in the first half, Chicago had no need for Tory Taylor down the stretch except when he held for field goal and extra point attempts. Limited to 13 minutes, 16 seconds of possession before the break, the Bears took control for 20:13 in the second half.

Such an onslaught would test any defense.

“What a second half,” gushed play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt after the Bears tied the score at 21. “It’s – I think this is the first time I can remember all year seeing the Packers’ D just gassed.”

Color analyst Tom Brady echoed that sentiment after Bears running back Kyle Monangai picked up six to reach the Green Bay 17-yard line with less than two minutes remaining.

“They’ve (the Bears) have really worn this team (the Packers) down,” Brady asserted.

Monangai carried twice more for three yards to set up fourth-and-one from the Green Bay 14. From there, Bears quarterback Caleb Williams rolled to his left but underthrew an open Cole Kmet in the end zone.

Keisean Nixon intercepted to end the threat and salt away the game.

If Green Bay’s defense was gassed in the second half, credit and/or blame the Bears. The visitors converted seven of nine third downs. Their four longest gains – passes of 27 (to Luther Burden), 26 (Kmet), 24 (Devin Duvernay) and 18 (Burden) – came after intermission.

The Bears took 5:36 off the clock in foraging for their first touchdown, a 10-play, 64-yard advance capped by Williams’ 1-yard pass to Olamide Zaccheaus. They used up 8:32 on a 17-play, 83-yard excursion that culminated in a 1-yard TD toss to Colston Loveland.

Chicago spent more time on Green Bay’s side of the field in the second half than it did its own. Twenty-eight of its 40 plays (70 percent) originated beyond the 50, good for 150 yards, 10 first downs, two touchdowns and a field goal.

Historically, the Bears rarely stake out such a wide-sweeping territorial claim. Only three times before in the last 75 years of the rivalry have they run 28 or more second-half plays beyond the 50, having last done so in 1983.

Those 28 plays represent a season high for Green Bay’s defense. The Bengals (26 plays), Giants (25) and Commanders (23) also nicked them for more than 20 in the second half.

Fortunately, the Green and Gold does not have to face Cincinnati, New York or Washington again this season. They will, of course, tangle with the Bears again, an animal intent on maximizing its playoff position while exacting revenge.

Territorial Animals
Since 1950, the six regular-season games in which Chicago ran 25 or more second-half plays in Packers territory.

Plays     Date                Yards    FDs    TDs    Result
29           Sept. 6, 1981       137          8          1         GB won, 16-9
29           Oct. 3, 1965         123         9          1          GB won, 23-14
28           Dec. 7, 2025        150        10         2         GB won, 28-21
28           Dec. 18, 1983      136        10         2          GB lost, 21-23
25           Nov. 18, 1951       117          8          2         GB lost, 13-24
25           Nov. 8, 1987        86           7          1          GB lost, 24-26

OTD: 100th Anniversary Red Grange-Chicago Bears Tour - New York Game

 LOOKING BACK
By Chris Willis, NFL Films

     From the start, when Red signed his contract to play pro football, the game in New York was going to be a big event in the Big Apple. The New York Giants announced early on they would not increase ticket prices for the “Red Grange game.” Regular prices ranged from 50 cents to $2.75. It was a smart move by Giants owner Tim Mara. On Sunday Nov. 29^th (just three days after Red played his first pro game on Thanksgiving) during their game against the Dayton Triangles, nine booths were opened at the Polo Grounds, as the Giants sold over 15,000 tickets to the Red Grange game. Later on during the week additional tickets were sold at the Giants ticket office and at the Polo Grounds. On December 4^th advance sales were reported to be over 45,000. 

On three separate occasions new tickets had to be printed up to meet the demand. Almost every mention of the contest was called the “Red Grange Game,” with a slight mention of the Chicago Bears.

   All week the New York newspapers wrote about Red Grange and his appearance in New York. Some articles included photographs of the redhead. It was an event worthy of the Big Apple. Ford Frick of the New York Evening Journal wrote:

    “Not since Mr. Babe Ruth went on his home run rampage a few seasons ago has any athlete attracted so much attention as Mr. Grange. Almost single handed he has filled stadium after stadium…Like Ruth, he is a hero whether he runs for a touchdown or is thrown for a loss.” 

    Tim Mara needed this type of game. He had been losing money all season, reports mentioned that he had a financial deficit of about $40,000. Mara had been rethinking his investment into a NFL franchise in New York, but the early sales of the Grange game picked his spirits up. Mara’s squad was preparing to stop the Galloping Ghost. Giants coach Bob Folwell (former college head coach at four different schools, including at Navy from 1920-1924, where he won over 100 games) had a plan for Grange.

    “It will be the duty of the Giants to stop Grange short of the scrimmage line. Two strong, aggressive tackles will consistently stop the greatest runner before he reaches the line, and we are confident that our team possesses two tackles of this type in (Century) Milstead and (Babe) Parnell.

    We are looking forward to a very spectacular and hard-fought battle with Grange, and his new teammates next Sunday, but not one member of our squad is worrying over the outcome.”

    On the morning of the game the rain had stopped on the east coast and the sky was clearing. Mara knew this could be a day that could save his team. “When I saw that crowd and knew half the cash in the house was mine, I said to myself, ‘Timothy, how long has this gravy train been running,” commented Mara about seeing the massive crowd arrive. The gates at the Polo Grounds opened at 11:30 a.m. with a 2:00 pm kickoff. At noon the Basile’s Regimental Band played a few tunes such as “Hail, Hail, the Gang’s All Here” and “The Sidewalks of New York.” At 1:15 p.m. the Bears jogged out onto the field. What they saw was another record crowd for a pro football game. Newspapers reported the crowd between 65,000-70,000, which matched the Army-Navy game held at the Polo Grounds a week earlier. “I don’t think there were too many rabid fans one way or the other,” recalled Wellington Mara, son of Giants owner Tim Mara. “We hadn’t had time to build up that much of a following. I think they were there to see Red Grange perform, without any questions.” Inside the stadium bunting decorated the stands and it was a perfect day for a football game, “bright and balmy” wrote the New York Times.

In the press box the ever-growing number of sportswriters was increasing. Over 100 newspaper writers crowded the box including some of the most influential sports scribes in the country. The group there to see Red were Westbrook Pegler (Chicago Tribune), Harry MacNamara (Chicago Herald-Examiner), Harry Neily (Chicago American), Richard Vidmer (New York Times), Allison Danzig (New York Times), W. O. McGeehan (New York Herald-Tribune), Marshall Hunt (New York Daily News), Frank O’Neil (New York Evening-Journal), Ford Frick (New York Evening-Journal), Bill Cunningham (Boston Post), Roger Batchelder (Boston Globe), Damon Runyon (Universal Service), and Lawrence Perry (AP). Also in the press box was Dudley Nichols of the New York World. Nichols would go on to become a successful screenwriter in Hollywood writing screenplays for films like Bringing Up Baby (1938), Stagecoach (1939), For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943) and winning an Academy Award for The Informer (1935). On this day he would watch the Galloping Ghost thrill the Big Apple.

    Red has now played four games with the Bears. He was plenty involved in the offense and had played very well on defense. But more importantly he proved to his new teammates that he was a team player. Joey Sternaman recalled the game plan in using Grange.
    “Well, we he [Red] came with the Bears, I was the play caller, and I said to him, ‘Are you interested in doing well for yourself or are you interested in winning ball games?’ After all, he’d been used to an offense down at Illinois that was built solely on opening a hole for him. Everything was geared to that. Well, we had a lot of different things, and we need them in the pros. We had quick opener that would work well with Red, but we also had a lot of deceptive plays that we used. We were not just going to blow open a hole for Red Grange.
    Well, Red was honestly interested in winning games, and, as I found out, he was one of the finest team players around. So, what I did a lot after Red came with us was use him as a decoy. I’d fake handing the ball off to him, and hell, I’d be bootlegging around the other end or off on the other side passing it to one of our ends. We used a lot of deception, and it worked well. And Red took a real beating, especially that first year, but he never complained, just played his best.”

     Red the decoy would take center stage in the entertainment capital of the world. The Bears faced off against a good Giants football team who were on a roll, having won 7 straight NFL games, and outscored their opponents 84-15, with five shutouts. The Bears got off to fast start by establishing a tough running game. With Red being a decoy in the red zone, they scored twice with Joey Sternaman carry the ball over for both scores to take a 12-0 first quarter lead. The Giants cut the lead to 12-7 at the half. In the second half the two defenses played tough. When Red wasn’t in the game chants from the stands of “We Want Grange!” rang throughout the stadium. Finally, in the fourth quarter Red gave the massive crowd what they came to see, a thrill, when he returned an interception (30 yards) down the sidelines for a game clinching touchdown. The Bears left the Polo Grounds with a 19-7 victory. The game ended at 4:25 p.m. as the New York crowd left the stadium with a lasting highlight from the Galloping Ghost. Red played roughly 35 of the 60 minutes. He recalled the game:

    “Although we had won, it was one of the most bruising battles I had ever been in. I especially remember one play when Joe Alexander, the Giants’ center, almost twisted my head off in making a tackle…It was clear we were all beginning to show the wear and tear of our crowded schedule. After that encounter with the Giants, the Bears were no longer able to field a team free of injuries.”

Red Grange, ball carrier, against New York Giants, notice large crowd 
at Polo Grounds.

    Red always remembered the Giants game as one of the most physical games he played in on the barnstorming tour. He would leave the game with numerous bruises and was kicked in the arm by Giants linemen Tommy Tomlin. Whatever money he was able to walk away with he definitely earned it. As for the New York press, they wrote glowingly of pro football and the Galloping Ghost. Allison Danzig, one of the lead sportswriters for the New York Times wrote:

    “New York saw red yesterday; not the red that causes the eye to flame with anger, but the Red who inflames the imagination with the heroic proportions of his deeds on the football field and the glamour that surrounds the most celebrated figure the game has known. For three years New York has heard about Red Grange, read about him, talked about him. Yesterday it saw him.

    To call these 70,000 spectators football followers needs correction. There were thousands in that tremendous assemblage who probably never saw a game before, who did not have the slightest idea of what the proceedings were all about. They knew only that Grange was out there on the field among the twenty-two young warriors clad in moleskins and they wanted to see what were the things he did and how he did them to differentiate him from the twenty-one others and win him such renown.”

    George Trevor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle (who went on to be one of the greatest college football writers for the New York Sun) simply wrote:

    “There is an indefinable something about Grange that stamps him as one among many. Babe Ruth has it. Man o’War had it, Jack Dempsey has it. Even while he was being effectively bottled up, Grange looked the part of a master player. Class sticks out all over him.”

    The New York Daily News had full coverage of the game (game recap written by Marshall Hunt) that included a photo spread of five images on the back page under the bold caption of “70,000 See Grange Star.” The great Ford Frick of the New York Evening Journal wrote:

    “Well, Mr. Red Grange has come and gone. So has some $30,000 of good money which was last seen being stuffed into the professional sock of the professional Red Head himself. But it was worth it. National hysteria always is, all the Red Grange hysteria is one of the noblest brand this writer has ever been privileged to witness.

    During the first part of the game the Red Head failed to distinguished himself unduly, and there was considerable jeering. This however turned to cheers as he snatched that final Giants pass out of the air and galloped to a touchdown- and everyone left the field happy and contented.” 

   Frick would be mesmerized by the Galloping Ghost, so much that he would follow the rest of the eastern barnstorming tour for the next week. He would travel with the Bears, writing every day about the going on’s of the tour and its superstar- Red Grange. No pro football or NFL game had ever been covered by the press like the Grange game in New York. Lastly, even the Giants players were impressed by Red. Giants right tackle “Babe” Parnell said, “He’s just about the best backfield man I’ve ever seen play.”  

     The Chicago Tribune reported that Grange earned roughly $30,000 from the gate (from a total gate of $120,000), while Pyle stated to the press that the amount was $36,000. (Grange told Westbrook Pegler amount was $36,000). This was one of the few games that Dutch Sternaman didn’t keep a gate statement. Whatever the total was, you can be sure it was the biggest gate ever for a professional football game.

    Later that night just after 10 p.m. Red agreed to give a speech on New York radio station WEAF to help raise money for the Near East Relief Fund. Transmitted to over a half dozen stations across the country, including St. Louis, Cincinnati, Washington, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, he spoke at length about football. “Football, I am convinced is the best game invented. It demands more than any other game from a player and the rewards of it are spiritual rather than material...I am sure that I am better man for having played this game. The big thing I have won from football, is not the fortunate break which has enabled me to earn certain monetary rewards, but rather the more permanent matter of training in courage, stamina and ability to use mind and muscle more effectively.”

    Yes, Red loved the game of football and everything about it, he always did and always would. But the money he collected in his first ten days as a professional football player would take center stage. His bank account was about to grew even bigger.

Red Grange, close-up, at Polo Grounds against
New York Giants, on Dec. 6, 1925.

NEXT: 

Dec. 8th - Red Grange-Chicago Bears at Washington All-Stars