The 1925 NFL season was the sixth regular season of the National Football League. Five new teams entered the league: New York Giants, Detroit Panthers, Pottsville Maroons, Providence Steam Roller, and a new Canton Bulldogs team. The Kenosha Maroons folded, with the Racine Legion and Minneapolis Marines mothballing.

1925 NFL season
Regular season
DurationSeptember 20 – December 20, 1925
A controversial ruling by the NFL suspended the Pottsville Maroons from all league privileges, including the right to play for the NFL championship.
ChampionsChicago Cardinals
1925 NFL season is located in USA Midwest and Northeast
Pros
Pros
Bisons
Bisons
Bulldogs
Bulldogs
Bears
Bears
Cardinals
Cardinals
Bulldogs
Bulldogs
Tigers
Tigers
Triangles
Triangles
Panthers
Panthers
Kelleys
Kelleys
Yellow Jackets
Yellow Jackets
Packers
Packers
Cowboys
Cowboys
Badgers
Badgers
Giants
Giants
Maroons
Maroons
Steam Roller
Steam Roller
Jeffersons
Jeffersons
Independents
Independents
Traveling teams Pros
Traveling teams
Pros

Teams edit

Twenty teams competed in the NFL during the 1925 season.

First season in NFL * Last active season ^ Last season before hiatus, rejoined league later §
Team jumped to the AFL Rejoined the NFL **
Team Head coach(es) Stadium
Akron Pros Scotty Bierce Akron League Park
Buffalo Bisons Walt Koppisch Bison Stadium
Canton Bulldogs ** Harry Robb League Field
Chicago Bears George Halas Cubs Park
Chicago Cardinals Norman Barry Comiskey Park
Cleveland Bulldogs § Cap Edwards Dunn Field
Columbus Tigers Red Weaver West Side Athletic Club
Dayton Triangles Carl Storck Triangle Park
Detroit Panthers * Jimmy Conzelman Navin Field
Duluth Kelleys Dewey Scanlon Duluth Athletic Park
Frankford Yellow Jackets Guy Chamberlin Frankford Stadium
Green Bay Packers Curly Lambeau City Stadium
Hammond Pros Fritz Pollard (1 game) and Doc Young (4 games) Traveling team
Kansas City Cowboys Roy Andrews Muehlebach Field
Milwaukee Badgers Johnny Bryan Milwaukee Athletic Park
New York Giants * Bob Folwell Polo Grounds
Pottsville Maroons Dick Rauch Minersville Park
Providence Steam Rollers * Archie Golembeski Cycledrome
Rochester Jeffersons ^ Tex Grigg Edgerton Park
Rock Island Independents Rube Ursella Douglas Park

1925 NFL Championship controversy edit

Controversy surrounds who actually won the 1925 NFL Championship. Officially, the Chicago Cardinals are listed as the 1925 NFL champions because they finished with the best record; however, many Pottsville fans at the time claimed that the Maroons were the legitimate champions. The Maroons and the Cardinals were the top contenders for the title, with Pottsville winning a late-season meeting between them, 21–7. But the Maroons scheduled a game against a team of University of Notre Dame All-Stars in Philadelphia (and winning 9–7) on the same day that the Frankford Yellow Jackets were scheduled to play a game in the same city. Frankford protested, saying that it was violating their protected territory rights.

Although NFL president Joe Carr warned the Maroons in writing that they faced suspension if they played in Philadelphia, the Maroons claimed that Carr had previously approved the game during a telephone call, and played anyway. In response, Carr fined the club, suspended it from all league rights and privileges (including the right to play for the NFL championship), and returned its franchise to the league.

In 2003, the NFL decided to again examine the case regarding the 1925 championship. In October of that year, the NFL voted 30–2 not to reopen the case, with only Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, the league's two Pennsylvania-based teams, voting in favor. Thus, the Cardinals are still listed as the 1925 NFL champions.[1]

Had the current (post-1972) system of counting ties as half a win and half a loss been in place in 1925, the Maroons would have won the championship with a win percentage of .833, while the Cardinals would have finished runner-up at .821.

Standings edit

NFL standings
W L T PCT PF PA STK
Chicago Cardinals * 11 2 1 .846 229 65 W2
Pottsville Maroons * 10 2 0 .833 270 45 W5
Detroit Panthers 8 2 2 .800 129 39 W1
New York Giants 8 4 0 .667 122 67 W1
Akron Pros 4 2 2 .667 65 51 L2
Frankford Yellow Jackets 13 7 0 .650 190 169 W2
Chicago Bears 9 5 3 .643 158 96 W3
Rock Island Independents 5 3 3 .625 99 58 L1
Green Bay Packers 8 5 0 .615 151 110 W1
Providence Steam Roller 6 5 1 .545 111 101 L1
Canton Bulldogs 4 4 0 .500 50 73 L1
Cleveland Bulldogs 5 8 1 .385 75 135 L1
Kansas City Cowboys 2 5 1 .286 65 97 W1
Hammond Pros 1 4 0 .200 23 87 L3
Buffalo Bisons 1 6 2 .143 33 113 L4
Rochester Jeffersons 0 6 1 .000 26 111 L5
Dayton Triangles 0 7 1 .000 3 84 L7
Duluth Kelleys 0 3 0 .000 6 25 L3
Milwaukee Badgers 0 6 0 .000 7 191 L6
Columbus Tigers 0 9 0 .000 28 124 L9

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
* The Pottsville Maroons were suspended from the league in December, resulting in the Chicago Cardinals being named the NFL champions.

All star team edit

NFL league president Joseph Carr chose an all-star team for 1925, including players from Red Grange's tour.[2]

Ends edit

Tackles edit

Guards edit

Center edit

Quarterback edit

Halfbacks edit

Fullback edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Pottsville Maroons: NFL owners refuse to reconsider 1925 ruling". Archived from the original on October 23, 2009.
  2. ^ Chris Willis (August 19, 2010). The Man Who Built the National Football League: Joe F. Carr. p. 217. ISBN 9780810876705.