The 1951 Season

Here are the playoff seeds for 1951.

#6 seed-Chicago Bears (7-5)
Last Playoff Appearance...1950, lost NFL Semifinal
Playoff Record...2-9
Pro Bowl-QB Johnny Lujack, LT George Connor, LG Dick Barwegan, C Bulldog Turner, RDT Ray Bray, RDE Ed Sprinkle, FB John Dottley

The Bears got off to a quick 5-1 start, then held on over the second half of the season to sneak into the playoffs. The 1951 Chicago Bears were unlike any other Chicago playoff team before it. The Bears struggled on defense, with opposing offenses having little or no problem holding on to the ball and producing touchdowns. Offensively, the Bears had the top ranked rushing attack in the NFL.

#5 seed-San Francisco 49ers (7-4-1)
Last Playoff Appearance...1949, lost NFL Semifinal
Playoff Record...4-4
Pro Bowl-S Jim Cason, RT Leo Nomellini, LE Gordie Soltau, LT Ray Collins

The 49ers struggled through 9 weeks, but won their last 3 games to head to the postseason. San Francisco was not exceptional on either side of the ball, but the ground attack was second only to the Bears. Joe Perry led that ground attack, averaging 5.0 yards per carry.

#4 seed-Detroit Lions (7-4-1)
Last Playoff Appearance...1945, lost NFL Semifinal
Playoff Record...0-1
Pro Bowl-QB Bobby Layne, RH Bob Hoernschemeyer, LG Lou Creekmur, RE Leon Hart, MG Les Bingaman, LDH Don Doll, LH Doak Walker

The Lions used a perfect November to get to their first postseason appearance in 6 years. Detroit excelled in the passing game and finished second in the NFL in points. Bobby Layne threw 26 TD, 12 of them to Leon Hart.

#3 seed-Los Angeles Rams (8-4)
Last Playoff Appearance...1950, lost NFL Quarterfinal
Playoff Record...4-5
Pro Bowl-RE Elroy Hirsch, LDE Larry Brink, MG Stan West, LLB Don Paul, RLB Tank Younger, FB Dan Towler, QB Bob Waterfield, QB Norm Van Brocklin

The 1951 Rams featured one of the most prolific offenses in the history of the NFL. Los Angeles averaged 451 yards and 33 points, while leading the NFL in passing yardage and first downs. Elroy "Crazy Legs" Hirsch set a new NFL standard for receiving yards in a season, breaking Mac Speedie's 4-year old record. Hirsch averaged nearly 23 yards per catch and has scored 17 touchdowns so far this year.

#2 seed-New York Giants (9-2-1)
Last Playoff Appearance...1951, won NFL Championship
Playoff Record...5-4, 1951 NFL Champions
Pro Bowl-FB Eddie Price, LT Tex Coulter, LDT Arnie Weinmeister, RDT Al DeRogatis, RS Otto Schnellbacher, LDH Emlen Tunnell, MG Jon Baker

The defending champions are back to go for a repeat performance. While the Giants struggled mightily on offense, finishing dead last in yards, the defense led the NFL in yards allowed, giving up just 76 yards per game on the ground. New York heads to the postseason having won 6 of their last 7 games, having given up just 24 points total in their previous 4, all victories.

#1 seed-Cleveland Browns (11-1)
Last Playoff Appearance...1951, lost NFL Semifinal
Playoff Record...8-3, 2 NFL Championships (1946, 1948)
Pro Bowl-QB Otto Graham, RH Dub Jones, RE Dante Lavelli, MG Bill Willis, RDE Len Ford, LLB Tony Adamle, K Lou Groza, LH Ken Carpenter

Cleveland allowed the fewest points in the league. The defense pitched 4 shutouts, limiting the opposition to 13 points per game. The offense was balanced and efficient. Otto Graham was a 1st team All-Pro, and he had a variety of weapons to deploy. The Browns lost the opener in San Francisco before winning 11 straight to close the season.

1951 Playoffs

December 23, 1951
San Francisco 49ers at Detroit Lions, 3 pm
Chicago Bears at Los Angeles Rams, 6:30 pm

December 30, 1951
highest seed at New York Giants, 3 pm
lowest seed at Cleveland Browns, 6:30 pm

January 6, 1952
NFL Championship, 6:30 pm