NFL Football: A History of America's New National Pastime

2 Depression and War

2 Depression and War Great in depth and duration, the Great Depression left an imprint on the psyche of a generation of Americans. For the middle class it shattered the basic rules of achievement: work hard, live the frugal and moral life, and success will be your reward. Suddenly hard-working, morally upright Americans found themselves “failures” under the old rules. Out of work and struggling day to day, many Americans felt as if the rules of the American capitalist system had been turned on their head. Dreams were shattered as few American institutions or businesses came through the economic crisis unscathed. Some did not survive, and those that did were affected in fundamental ways, as was the American system itself. Late in the decade it seemed that survival was assured. Then World War II arrived to alter lives and institutions yet again. Survival returned as an issue, albeit in somewhat different terms. Though the war brought hardship in the United States, most historians would argue that the stimulus it provided is what truly brought the country out of economic depression. Life was altered significantly and fundamentally, and when the country emerged victorious, it was a different world. Sport in America was not exempt from any of these forces. The NFL survived but not without some basic changes. Trauma required change in the way in which business was conducted, and these changes, both within the NFL and the world around it, resulted in a stronger and ultimately more successful league. By the end of the 1930s the NFL had a new look and new leadership poised to move forward. At least one sports historian, but by no means all, saw these years as transformative, as the NFL went from a “barnstorming league to a major sports entity.” The economic crisis seemed less severe for the NFL than for Major League Baseball. The NFL was operating at a much lower economic level and thereCrepeau_text .indd 20 7/1/14 11:29 AM 21 D e pr e s s i o n a n d War fore did not have so far to fall. The Depression pushed the league toward the model that Joe Carr and others envisioned. The loss of the small and weak franchises positioned the NFL to focus on building its strengths in the larger markets. There were changes in league structure, competition, and ownership. On the technological front the NFL embraced radio, initiating a significant and profitable relationship with the emerging broadcast media. On a more sobering note, the NFL adopted an unwritten rule of racial segregation similar to that practiced in baseball. Negatives Can Be Positives Green Bay was the only small-market team to survive the Depression, while larger-market teams struggled. Between 1930 and 1934, franchises failed in Dayton, Buffalo, Boston, Cleveland, Minneapolis, Newark, Providence, and Frankford, Pennsylvania. Franchises were added in Boston in 1932, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia in 1933, and Cleveland in 1937, the same year that the Boston team moved to Washington, D.C. The Portsmouth, Ohio, team moved to Detroit in 1934. The result was more stability in a ten-team league.1 Another sign of prosperity for the NFL can be found in the fact that in both 1935 and 1940 new leagues were inaugurated. Both were named the “American Football League.” Although neither survived, the second AFL offered one other tidbit to the lore of pro football when they instituted a league draft of the top fifty college players of 1940, and allowed them to sign with whichever team they chose.2 The two AFL efforts indicated that there were people out there, whatever their motives and wisdom, who believed that professional football was a viable product that could find a fan base. The example of the NFL was attractive enough to encourage others to take a financial plunge into the new and growing world of pro football. The Depression decade began with the Green Bay Packers concluding a three-peat with league championships in 1929, 1930, and 1931. Over those three seasons the Packers posted a record of 34-5-2 and were undefeated in 1929. Curly Lambeau was the coach, and the Pack was led by Johnny “Blood” McNally, who was an excellent pass receiver and runner. The Packers added another league championship in 1936 and a Western Division title in 1938. Clarke Hinkle, the great Packer fullback, recalled that when they went on the road the Packers drew big crowds. “We were the Notre Dame of...