1943 NFL season

The 1943 NFL season was the 24th regular season of the National Football League. As more players left to serve in World War II, three teams were affected by the depleted rosters. The Cleveland Rams were granted permission to suspend operations for this season. The Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers merged for this one season. The combined team, known as Phil-Pitt (and called the "Steagles" by fans), played four home games in Philadelphia and two in Pittsburgh.

The season ended when the Chicago Bears defeated the Washington Redskins, 41-21, in the NFL Championship Game played the day after Christmas (the first time in NFL history that a playoff game was played so late in the year). Chicago had finished its regular season on November 28, winning the Western Division with an 8-1-1 record. However, the Bears had to wait for three straight weekends while the Eastern Division teams settled on a champion. Washington and the New York Giants ended the regular season by playing against each other on two consecutive Sundays, December 5 and December 12 (the December 12th game being a makeup from the postponed game of October 3rd), with the Giants winning both games to force a first-place tie at 6-3-1 each. The Redskins, however, won the playoff game to advance to play the Bears.

Major rule changes

*The free substitution rule is adopted. Enacted in response to the depleted rosters of the World War II period, any or all of the players may be replaced by substitutes after any play.
*The wearing of helmets becomes mandatory for all players.

Division Races

The NFL played a shortened schedule of ten games. In the Eastern Division, the Phil-Pitt team won its first two games and actually led at "Week Four", with 1-0-0 Washington close behind, while in the Western Division, the Bears and Packers tied 21-21 in their first game and were 2-0-1 after four weeks. In "Week Five", the division leaders happened to play each other on October 17, with the Bears beating the Steagles 48-21 and the Redskins defeating the Packers 33-7, leaving the two winners in first place.

The Redskins (5-0-1) and Bears (7-0-1) were still unbeaten going into "Week Eleven", and met in Washington on November 21, with the Redskins winning 21-7. The Redskins had their first loss in "Week Twelve" being beaten by Phil-Pitt, 27-14, on November 28, while the Bears clinched the Western Division the same day with a 35-24 win over the Cardinals for an 8-1-1 finish. In "Week Thirteen", Phil-Pitt lost its very last game, falling to Green Bay 38-28, and was out of contention at 5-4-1. Meanwhile, the Giants beat the Redskins, 14-10, in New York. The next week, the Giants (5-3-1) and Redskins (6-2-1) met again, in Washington, and beat them 31-7, creating a tie in the Eastern Division. For the third straight weekend, New York and Washington faced each other, this time in a playoff, which the Redskins won 28-0.

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"

References

* "NFL Record and Fact Book" (ISBN 1-932994-36-X)
* [http://www.nfl.com/history/chronology/1941-1950 NFL History 1941-1950] (Last accessed December 4, 2005)
* [http://nflhistory.net/linescores/pdf/1943.pdf 1943 season in details]
* "Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League" (ISBN 0-06-270174-6)