1944 NFL Championship Game


The 1944 National Football League Championship Game was the 12th National Football League title game. The game was played on December 17 at the Polo Grounds in New York City, and the attendance was 46,016. The game featured the Green Bay Packers, champions of the Western Division versus the Eastern Division champion New York Giants.
The Packers were led by longtime head coach Curly Lambeau and its stars were running back Ted Fritsch, end Don Hutson, and quarterback Irv Comp. The Giants were led by head coach Steve Owen. They also had running back Bill Paschal and former Packers quarterback Arnie Herber as well as a dominant defense. The Packers were slight favorites, despite the Giants' 24–0 shutout win four weeks earlier. Prior to the game, the Packers had spent over a week preparing in Charlottesville, Virginia
The Packers completed their regular season on November 26, the Giants on December 10.

Green Bay scored two touchdowns in the second quarter then yielded one early in the fourth to win 14-7 for their sixth and final league title under Lambeau, their first since 1939.
The Packers did not return to the title game for 16 years, and won the following year in 1961, the first of five titles in seven seasons in the 1960s under head coach Vince Lombardi.

Scoring summary

Sunday, December 17, 1944
Kickoff: 2 p.m. EWT
The NFL had only four game officials in ; the back judge was added in, the line judge in, and the side judge in.

Players' shares

The players' shares were the highest to date: each Packer player received about $1,500 while each Giant saw about $900.