1948 NFL Championship Game
The 1948 NFL Championship Game was the 16th History of the [National Football League championship|title game] of the National Football League, played at Shibe Park in Philadelphia on December 19.
The game was a rematch of the previous year's title game between the defending champion, the Chicago Cardinals season|Chicago Cardinals], champions of the Western Division, and the Philadelphia Eagles season|Philadelphia Eagles], champions of the Eastern Division. The Cardinals were slight favorites, at 3½ points despite losing quarterback Paul Christman with a fractured wrist injury.
It was the first NFL championship game to be televised. Due to heavy snowfall, the grounds crew needed the help of players from both teams to remove the tarp from the field. The opening kickoff was delayed a half-hour until 2 p.m., and three extra officials were called into service to assist with out-of-bounds calls. The stadium lights were also turned on for the entire game.
The Eagles won their first NFL Championship, defeating the Cardinals 7–0 with a final quarter touchdown. It was also the first championship for Philadelphia since, when the Frankford Yellow Jackets season|Frankford Yellow Jackets] won the league championship on standings,.
Game summary
The game was played in Philadelphia during a significant snowstorm. Bert Bell, the NFL commissioner, had considered postponing the game, but the players for both teams wanted to play the game. The snow began at daybreak and by kickoff the accumulation was at a temperature of. The paid attendance for the game was 36,309, but the actual turnout at Shibe Park was 28,864.It was a scoreless game until early in the fourth quarter when, after Chicago had fumbled in their own end of the field, the Eagles recovered the fumble that set up Steve Van Buren's five-yard touchdown at 1:05 into the fourth quarter. The game ended with the Eagles deep in Chicago territory. Eagles head coach Greasy Neale gave a majority of the credit for the win to veteran quarterback Tommy Thompson.
With only five pass completions on 23 attempts for both teams, the game was completed in two hours and two minutes.
Scoring summary
Statistics
Source:| Statistics | Philadelphia | Chicago |
| First downs | 16 | 5 |
| Rushing yards | 225 | 100 |
| Passing yards | 7 | 38 |
| Passing | 2–12–2 | 3–11–1 |
| Punts–yards | 5-183 | 8-298 |
| Fumbles–lost | 1-1 | 3-2 |
| Penalties–yards | 3-17 | 4-33 |
Officials
- Referee: Ronald Gibbs
- Umpire: Samuel Wilson
- Head linesman: Charlie Berry
- Back judge: Robert Austin
- Field judge: William McHugh
Players' shares
The gross receipts for the game, including radio and television rights, were just under $224,000. Each player on the winning Eagles team received $1,540, while each Cardinals player made $879.Aftermath
Eagles' owner Lex Thompson was in the hospital for appendicitis during the game. He sold the team a few weeks after this game to the Happy Hundred syndicate for $250,000, and died six years later of a heart attack at the age of 43.The Eagles repeated as champions in 1949, winning in mud and heavy rain in Los Angeles. This 1948 game was the only time Shibe Park hosted an NFL Championship Game, as Franklin Field was the site for the Eagles' third Championship win in 1960, and they won their fourth NFL title in Super Bowl LII at Minneapolis in February 2018.
This game was the Cardinals' last appearance in any NFL Championship Game until Super Bowl XLIII in February 2009: the 2008 [Arizona Cardinals season|Cardinals] had to beat the Eagles in the NFC Championship Game to reach the Super Bowl.
This game was the lowest scoring of any NFL Championship Game, the only one with only one score, and the only one to be won with a single-digit score. It remains the second-lowest scoring postseason game in NFL history, eclipsed only by the Dallas Cowboys season|Dallas Cowboys]' 5–0 win over the Detroit Lions season|Detroit Lions] in 1970.