1935 NFL season

Overview

Were it not for the cancellation of a Redskins–Eagles game on November 17 due to heavy rain and snow, all of the teams would have played 12 games, which would have made 1935 the first season in which all NFL teams played the same number of games. The standardization of the league's schedule was formalized the following year and has continued ever since, with the number of games being slowly increased to 14 by 1961, 16 by , and 17 by .

The next season to have any teams play a different amount of regular season games was in , when a Bills–Bengals game on January 2 was declared a no contest due to the in-game collapse of Damar Hamlin.

This marked the last season until 2023 that every team in one division finished with a winning record, in this case the NFL West.

Teams

With the loss of the Cincinnati franchise and its St. Louis successor at the end of the 1934 NFL season, the league stood with a total of just 9 teams, split into divisions of unequal sizes.

Major rule changes

• The inbounds lines or hashmarks, introduced two years earlier in , were moved closer to the center of the field, from 10 yards to 15 yards from the sidelines, or 70 feet apart.

This width lasted for ten seasons, through . The hashmarks were moved to 20 yards from the sidelines (40 feet apart) in , which lasted for 27 seasons. They were moved in to the width of the goalposts (18½ feet) in .

Division races

In the Eastern Division, the key game took place on Thanksgiving Day at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, as the 5–4 Dodgers hosted the 6–3 Giants. A Brooklyn win would have tied the teams at 6–4, but New York won, 21–0, and went on to victories in their remaining two games to win the division championship comfortably at 9–3.

In the Western Division, all 4 teams were in a close race. On Thanksgiving Day the Lions defeated the Bears 14-2 while the Cardinals won over the Packers 9–7, leaving the Lions at 6–3–2 and the Cardinals at 6–3–1. Three days later on December 1, the Lions defeated Brooklyn 28–0, while the Cardinals tied the Bears 7–7. With this win, Detroit finished its season at 7–3–2 and eliminated the Packers and Bears from contention, while the Cardinals stood at 6–3–2 with another game against the Bears coming up on December 8. The Cardinals needed to win in order to force a playoff for the division title. However, the Bears won 13–0, and the Lions were the division champs.

Had the current (post-1972) system of counting ties as half a win and half a loss been in place in 1935, the Packers at 8–4–0 would have tied the 7–3–2 Lions for the Western Division title with .667, requiring a playoff game. This was the last season until 2023 that an entire division finished with a winning record.

Final standings

NFL Championship Game

Detroit 26, N.Y. Giants 7, at University of Detroit Stadium, in Detroit, Michigan, on December 15.

Statistical leaders

The 1935 season marked the fourth year in which official statistics were tracked and retained by the NFL. Certain statistics later regarded as staples were not maintained, including interceptions, punting average, kickoff return yardage and average, and field goal percentage, among others.

In the table below, ‡ denotes a new NFL record.

Source: Pete Palmer, et al. (eds.), The ESPN Pro Football Encyclopedia. First Edition. New York: Sterling Publishing, 2006; p. 1043.

Coaching changes

• Boston Redskins: William Dietz was replaced by Eddie Casey.
• Brooklyn Dodgers: Cap McEwen was replaced by Paul J. Schissler.
• Chicago Cardinals: Paul J. Schissler was replaced by Milan Creighton.
• Pittsburgh Pirates: Luby DiMeolo was replaced by Joe Bach.

References

• NFL Record and Fact Book ()
• NFL History 1931–1940 (Last accessed December 4, 2005)
• Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League ()

References

1. (March 24, 1972). "Owners give offense big seven-yard boost". Rome News-Tribune.
2. Pete Palmer, et al. (eds.), ''The ESPN Pro Football Encyclopedia.'' First Edition. New York: Sterling Publishing, 2006; p. 1040.
3. Palmer, et al. (eds.), ''The ESPN Pro Football Encyclopedia,'' p. 1043.