December 21, 1947Weather-23 degrees, 7 mph WSW, snow
Cleveland didn't play their best football, but it was good enough to beat Pittsburgh, 21-3, and advance to the 1947 NFL Semifinals. The Browns were outgained 274-213, but they were able to force several big turnovers that turned the game. Cleveland got on the board early on an 8-yard TD pass from Otto Graham to Mac Speedie. The Browns gained firm control of the game in the third quarter when Tom Colella turned his seventh interception of the season into a 58-yard touchdown and a 14-3 lead.
The Browns struggled to run the ball, but Graham would complete 12 of 18 for 127 yards and a TD, and his success on third down helped keep the Browns two scoring drives alive. Cleveland will host the late game next Sunday for a shot at an NFL Championship.
Pittsburgh Steelers..(8-5)-0-3-0-0-3
Cleveland Browns.(13-1-1)-7-0-7-7-21
Cle-Speedie 8 pass from Graham (Groza Kick)
Pit-Glamp 12 FG
Cle-Colella 58 interception return (Groza Kick)
Cle-Boedecker 11 run (Groza Kick)
Rushing (season totals in parentheses)
Pit-Clement-18-58-0 (147-728-4), Lach-15-30-0 (135-402-8), Cifers-11-25-0 (98-381-0), Compagno-2-25-0 (36-151-2)
Cle-Motley-16-42-0 (162-931-8), Jones-11-27-0 (80-470-5), Boedecker-5-20-1 (36-214-5), Mayne-3-6-0 (44-81-0)
Passing
Pit-Clement-17-9-141-0-1 (140-61-1,145-7-10)
Cle-Graham-18-12-127-1-0 (287-175-2,880-26-11)
Receiving
Pit-Jansante-3-34-0 (38-633-5), Garnaas-2-58-0 (7-202-2), Lach-2-22-0 (13-99-1), Compagno-1-24-0 (10-214-1), Nickel-1-3-0 (2-13-0)
Cle-Speedie-6-55-1 (73-1,201-7), Lavelli-5-66-0 (54-865-9), Motley-1-6-0 (8-79-1)
How is this possible? The Browns were members of the All-America Football Conference from 1946 through 1949. They didn't join the NFL until 1950.
ReplyDeleteIt's not possible IRL. Every pro football team is treated equally regardless of the league for these purposes. You can read the first 2 posts in the blog for more info.
ReplyDelete