The 1944 Brooklyn Tigers season was their 15th and final season in the league before merging with the Boston Yanks. The team failed to improve on their previous season's output of 2–8, losing all ten games.[1] They failed to qualify for the playoffs for the 13th consecutive season.
| 1944 Brooklyn Tigers season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Dan Topping |
| General manager | Tom Gallery |
| Head coach | Frank Bridges, Pete Cawthon, and Ed Kubale |
| Home field | Ebbets Field |
| Results | |
| Record | 0–10 |
| Division place | 5th NFL Eastern |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
Schedule
edit| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 17 | at Green Bay Packers | L 7–14 | 0–1 | Wisconsin State Fair Park | Recap | |
| 2 | October 8 | at Detroit Lions | L 14–19 | 0–2 | Briggs Stadium | Recap | |
| 3 | October 15 | New York Giants | L 7–14 | 0–3 | Ebbets Field | Recap | |
| 4 | October 22 | at Washington Redskins | L 14–17 | 0–4 | Griffith Stadium | Recap | |
| 5 | October 29 | Boston Yanks | L 14–17 | 0–5 | Ebbets Field | Recap | |
| 6 | November 5 | Philadelphia Eagles | L 7–21 | 0–6 | Ebbets Field | Recap | |
| 7 | November 12 | Washington Redskins | L 0–10 | 0–7 | Ebbets Field | Recap | |
| 8 | November 19 | at Boston Yanks | L 6–13 | 0–8 | Fenway Park | Recap | |
| 9 | November 26 | at New York Giants | L 0–7 | 0–9 | Polo Grounds | Recap | |
| 10 | December 3 | at Philadelphia Eagles | L 0–34 | 0–10 | Shibe Park | Recap | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | |||||||
Standings
edit| NFL Eastern Division | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | PF | PA | STK | ||
| New York Giants | 8 | 1 | 1 | .889 | 6–1–1 | 206 | 75 | W4 | |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 7 | 1 | 2 | .875 | 6–0–2 | 267 | 131 | W2 | |
| Washington Redskins | 6 | 3 | 1 | .667 | 4–3–1 | 169 | 180 | L2 | |
| Boston Yanks | 2 | 8 | 0 | .200 | 2–6 | 82 | 233 | L2 | |
| Brooklyn Tigers | 0 | 10 | 0 | .000 | 0-8 | 69 | 166 | L10 | |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
| NFL Western Division | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | PF | PA | STK | ||
| Green Bay Packers | 8 | 2 | 0 | .800 | 7–1 | 238 | 141 | W1 | |
| Chicago Bears | 6 | 3 | 1 | .667 | 4–3–1 | 258 | 172 | W2 | |
| Detroit Lions | 6 | 3 | 1 | .667 | 4–3–1 | 216 | 151 | W4 | |
| Cleveland Rams | 4 | 6 | 0 | .400 | 4–4 | 188 | 224 | L2 | |
| Card-Pitt | 0 | 10 | 0 | .000 | 0–8 | 108 | 328 | L10 | |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Roster
editThe NFL used an active roster of just 28 players during the wartime seasons of 1943 and 1944. According to the league's preseason roster guide,[2] the 28-man roster for the 1944 Brooklyn Tigers consisted of the following:
|
Quarterbacks
|
Ends
|
Guards
|
Draft
editThe 1944 NFL draft was held on April 19, 1944, at the Warwick Hotel in Philadelphia. By agreement of league owners, the new Boston Yanks franchise received the first pick of the first round and then were subsequently assigned 11th in the order of draft selection.[3]
Although there were 32 rounds in the 1944 draft, each of the league's 11 teams selected 30 players, for a total of 330 players picked.[4] The five worst-finishing teams of the 1943 season picked alone in rounds 2 and 4, while the five best-finishing teams plus the expansion Yanks picked alone in rounds 31 and 32.
The complete list of players drafted by the Brooklyn Tigers in 1944 follows.[5] Due to the demands of World War II, only one of these players actually played for the Tigers during the 1944 season. Two others played for the merged franchise operating as the Yanks from 1945.
| 1944 Brooklyn Tigers draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Creighton Miller | Back | Notre Dame | |
| 2 | 13 | Jim Callahan | Tailback | Texas | Played in NFL in 1946 |
| 3 | 18 | Ralph Park | Back | Texas | |
| 4 | 29 | Rudy Sikich | Tackle | Minnesota | Played in NFL in 1945 |
| 5 | 34 | Verne Ullom | End | Cincinnati | |
| 6 | 45 | Bruce McDonald | End | Illinois State | |
| 7 | 56 | Bob Graiziger | Guard | Minnesota | |
| 8 | 67 | Jack Sachse | Center | Texas | Played for this franchise in 1945 |
| 9 | 78 | Mitchell Olenski | Tackle | Alabama | Played in AAFC in 1946 |
| 10 | 89 | Aldo Cenci | Back | Penn State | |
| 11 | 100 | John Bicanich | Guard | Minnesota | |
| 12 | 111 | Jim Tyree | End | Oklahoma | |
| 13 | 122 | Jim Wright | Guard | SMU | |
| 14 | 133 | John Genis | Tackle | Illinois | |
| 15 | 144 | Billy J. Murphy | Back | Mississippi State | |
| 16 | 155 | Doug Essick | End | USC | |
| 17 | 166 | Howard Maley | Halfback | SMU | |
| 18 | 177 | Don Willer | Tackle | USC | |
| 19 | 188 | Howard Callanan | Back | USC | |
| 20 | 199 | George Doherty | Tackle | Louisiana Tech | Played for Brooklyn in 1944 |
| 21 | 210 | Mike Mihalic | Guard | Mississippi State | |
| 22 | 221 | Ted Cook | End | Alabama | Played in NFL in 1947 |
| 23 | 232 | Bucky Gillenwater | Tackle | Texas | |
| 24 | 243 | Jack Baldwin | Center | Centenary | Played in AAFC in 1946 |
| 25 | 254 | Dick Manning | Back | USC | |
| 26 | 265 | Ray Grierson | End | Illinois | |
| 27 | 276 | Joe Golding | Back | Oklahoma | Played for this franchise in 1947 |
| 28 | 287 | Bob Zimny | Tackle | Indiana | Played in NFL in 1945 |
| 29 | 298 | Marty Frohm | Tackle | Mississippi State | |
| 30 | 309 | Howard Blose | Back | Cornell | |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
References
edit- ^ 1944 Brooklyn Tigers
- ^ George Strickler (ed.), National Football League 1944 Roster Manual. Chicago: National Football League, 1944; pp. 10–11.
- ^ George Strickler (ed.), Record and Rules Manual, 1944. Chicago: National Football League, 1944; p. 87.
- ^ Strickler (ed.), Record and Rules Manual, 1944, pp. 77–87, passim.
- ^ "1944 Brooklyn Tigers Draftees ," Pro Football Reference, www.pro-football-reference.com/