1955 Cleveland Browns season

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1955 Cleveland Browns season
Head coachPaul Brown
Home fieldCleveland Stadium
Local radioWTAM
Results
Record9–2–1
Division place1st Eastern
Playoff finishWon NFL Championship (at Rams) 38–14

The 1955 Cleveland Browns season was the team's sixth season with the National Football League. The Browns' defense became the first defense in the history of the NFL to lead the league in fewest points allowed and fewest total yards allowed for two consecutive seasons.[1]

The defending NFL champion Browns were 9–2–1 in the regular season and won the Eastern Conference. They played in the NFL Championship Game for the sixth consecutive year, and repeated as champion with a 38–14 win over the Rams in Los Angeles.[2][3]

Season summary[]

The 1955 season began in rough fashion for the Browns, with the defending world champions losing 27–17 at home in the opener to the Washington Redskins,[4] who had their best season in a decade by finishing second in the Eastern Conference at 8–4. But once hall of fame quarterback Otto Graham got back on track, so did the Browns. With Graham, who had been lured out of retirement when the team experienced problems at that position in training camp, leading the way, the Browns then went on to win six in a row and nine of their last 11 to finish 9–2–1 and capture their sixth consecutive conference title. The Browns then blasted the host Los Angeles Rams 38–14 in the league title game,[2][3] after which Graham retired again – this time for good, ending the club's remarkable first decade of existence in which it played in the league championship contest all 10 times and won seven crowns.

The Browns really caught fire offensively in the last five games. Including the title contest, they averaged 37.8 points per outing during that span, in which they won four times and played to a 35–35 tie with the New York Giants. Also, earlier in the year, they won the important road rematch with the Redskins, 24–14.

On the season, Graham threw for 15 touchdowns with just eight interceptions for a 94.0 quarterback rating, the second-best mark of his six-year NFL career. The Browns had three receivers with 29 or more catches, combining for 18 TDs. Pete Brewster was tops in receptions with 34, with Ray Renfro leading the way in scores with eight. Also, the Browns had something they hadn't had since their first year in the NFL—that is, a big-yardage running back. Fred "Curly" Morrison rushed for 824 yards, the most by a Brown since the team joined the league in 1950, when hall of famer Marion Motley had 810 yards.[5]

Roster[]

1955 Cleveland Browns roster
Quarterbacks

Running Backs

  • 30 Maurice Bassett FB
  • 32 Fred Morrison
  • 36 Ed Modzelewski FB/LB
  • 43 Bob Smith HB
  • 46 HB

Wide Receivers

  • 40 Dub Jones WR
  • 86 Dante Lavelli LE/E
  • 26 Ray Renfro RB/FL/KR/DB

Tight Ends

Offensive Linemen

Defensive Linemen

Linebackers

Defensive Backs

Special Teams

  • 76 Lou Groza LT/K
  • 84 Horace Gillom E/DE/P
 Reserve Lists
  • Vacant

Rookies in italics

Source:

Exhibition schedule[]

Week Date Opponent Result Attendance
1 August 12 vs. College All-Stars at Chicago L 27–30 75,000
2 August 20 vs. Green Bay Packers at Akron W 13–7 22,000
3 August 28 at San Francisco 49ers L 14–17 41,604
4 September 2 at Los Angeles Rams L 21–38 35,948
5 September 10 Detroit Lions L 3–19 29,581
6 September 15 at Chicago Bears L 21–24 43,067

Regular season[]

Main article: 1955 NFL season

Schedule[]

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap
1 September 25 Washington Redskins L 17–27 0–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 30,041 Recap
2 October 2 at San Francisco 49ers W 38–3 1–1 Kezar Stadium 46,150 Recap
3 October 9 Philadelphia Eagles W 21–17 2–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 43,974 Recap
4 October 16 at Washington Redskins W 24–14 3–1 Griffith Stadium 29,168 Recap
5 October 23 Green Bay Packers W 41–10 4–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 51,482 Recap
6 October 30 at Chicago Cardinals W 26–20 5–1 Comiskey Park 29,471 Recap
7 November 6 New York Giants W 24–14 6–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 46,524 Recap
8 November 13 at Philadelphia Eagles L 17–33 6–2 Connie Mack Stadium 39,303 Recap
9 November 20 Pittsburgh Steelers W 41–14 7–2 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 53,509 Recap
10 November 27 at New York Giants T 35–35 7–2–1 Polo Grounds 45,699 Recap
11 December 4 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 30–7 8–2–1 Forbes Field 31,101 Recap
12 December 11 Chicago Cardinals W 35–24 9–2–1 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 25,914 Recap

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings[]

NFL Eastern Conference
  • view
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 W L T PCT CONF PF PA STK
Cleveland Browns 9 2 1 .818 7–2–1 349 218 W2
Washington Redskins 8 4 0 .667 6–4 246 222 W1
New York Giants 6 5 1 .545 4–5–1 267 223 W2
Philadelphia Eagles 4 7 1 .364 4–5–1 248 231 L1
Chicago Cardinals 4 7 1 .364 3–6–1 224 252 L2
Pittsburgh Steelers 4 8 0 .333 4–6 195 285 L7

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

NFL Championship Game[]

Main article: 1955 NFL Championship Game
Round Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap
Championship December 26 at Los Angeles Rams W 38–14 1–0 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 87,695 Recap
  • Monday, 1 pm PST
Source:[2][3]

Awards and records[]

  • Led NFL, Points Scored (349)

References[]

  1. ^ The Best Show in Football:The 1946–1955 Cleveland Browns, p.294, Andy Piascik, Taylor Trade Publishing, 2007, ISBN 978-1-58979-360-6
  2. ^ a b c Kuechle, Oliver E. (December 27, 1955). "Browns crush Rams, 38-14, for pro title before 87,695". Milwaukee Journal. p. 17, part 2.
  3. ^ a b c "87,695 fans see Browns defeat Rams, 38 to 14". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. December 27, 1955. p. 1.
  4. ^ "Redskins roll over Browns, 27-17". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. September 26, 1955. p. 23.
  5. ^ "Season summary and statictics at Cleveland Browns.com". Archived from the original on October 25, 2011. Retrieved March 7, 2012.

External links[]

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