| 1944 Chicago-Pittsburgh Cardinals-Steelers season | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Head coach | Phil Handler,Walt Kiesling |
| Home stadium | Comiskey Park,Forbes Field |
| Radio partner | WGN · KDKA |
| Results | |
| Record | 0–10 |
| Division place | 5thNFL Western |
| Playoffs | Did not qualify |
Card-Pitt was the team created by the temporary merger of twoNational Football League (NFL) teams, theChicago Cardinals and thePittsburgh Steelers, during the1944 season. It was the second such merger for the Steelers, who had combined with thePhiladelphia Eagles in 1943 to form the "Steagles". The arrangement was made necessary by there being a shortage of numerous players due toWorld War II military service, and was dissolved upon completion of the season. The war ended before the start of the 1945 season, and both teams resumed normal operations.
Card-Pitt finished with a 0–10 record in theWestern Division, which led sportswriters to derisively label the team the "Car-Pitts", or "carpets".[1]
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| Arizona Cardinals history |
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| Card-Pitt (1944) |
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| List of seasons |
TheBoston Yanks joined the NFL in 1944, while theCleveland Rams, who had been unable to field a team in 1943, re-joined the league. This resulted in an 11-team league, and the NFL was unable to devise a schedule that was amenable to all registered teams. NFL commissionerElmer Layden contactedArt Rooney andBert Bell of the Steelers to request that their team again merge as a potential solution for the scheduling issue. Rooney agreed, on the condition that at least half of the team's home games would be played atPittsburgh'sForbes Field.
The choice of a merger partner for the Steelers proved to be a challenging task. Rumors prior to the NFL's annual April meeting indicated that either Cleveland or theBrooklyn Tigers would be the selected partner. Cleveland was considered a logical choice based solely on geographic location, but Layden felt it unfair to ask the Steelers to merge with a team that had been defunct a year earlier. Rooney rejected a proposal to merge with Brooklyn, and was hesitant to merge with the new Boston Yanks. He eventually agreed to combine his Steelers with the Cardinals, who had gone winless in 1943 along with having lost 16 straight games since their last win on October 18, 1942. The merged team would compete in the tougher Western Division, which included theGreen Bay Packers andChicago Bears.
Training camp for the merged team began inWaukesha, Wisconsin on August 15, 1944, under the direction of co-coachesWalt Kiesling of Pittsburgh andPhil Handler of Chicago. The coaching staff decided before the start of camp to implement aT formation offense. Some of the Steelers' players had been exposed to the 'T' with playing alongside Philadelphia Eagles players the previous year, but the Cardinals had used it very little. Card-Pitt lacked a dependablequarterback, but the team began the season with optimism.
During the team's first game, an exhibition atShibe Park against the Philadelphia Eagles, that was attended byBabe Ruth, the Eagles scored three first-quarter touchdowns on their way to a 22–0 victory. Card-Pitt regained its footing the following week, but lost 3–0 to aWashington Redskins team that had been predicted to win the game by three touchdowns.
Card-Pitt opened the regular season portion of its schedule in front of 21,000 spectators at Forbes Field on September 24, 1944, against a Cleveland Rams team led by former Steelers head coachAldo Donelli. Card-Pitt came back from a 16–0 deficit to take the lead, but a bad punt late in the fourth quarter allowed Cleveland to score the winning touchdown for a final score of 28–23. The team won an exhibition game the next week at Forbes Field, 17–16 over theNew York Giants.
"Why don't they call themselves the Car-Pits? I think it's very appropriate as every team in the league walks over them."
QuarterbackColey McDonough was drafted into theU.S. Army two days before the team's second regular season game, a contest against Green Bay.[2] ThePittsburgh Press gave the team little chance to defeat the Packers, who would go on to win that game 34–7. However,John McCarthy, a rookie out ofSaint Francis University inLoretto, Pennsylvania, performed well as McDonough's replacement.[3]
Card-Pitt then met theChicago Bears, a team missingMVP quarterbackSid Luckman and coachGeorge Halas among a roster that had been depleted by the war and injuries, in the third game of the season. ThePittsburgh Post-Gazette called Card-Pitt's effort against the Bears "pitiful", and the coaching staff became so irate that they finedJohnny Butler,John Grigas andEberle Schultz $200 apiece for "indifferent play". Upset with the coaches' strict, dictatorial style, the team refused to practice until the fined players received a fair hearing.[4] The players then met with Rooney, and Grigas and Schultz agreed to pay their fines and return to practice. Butler was suspended indefinitely, before being placed onwaivers and later claimed by Brooklyn. Rooney eventually rescinded the fines, except for Butler's.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette sports editorAl Abrams then quoted a disgusted fan as having written, "Why don't they call themselves the Car-Pits? I think it's very appropriate as every team in the league walks over them."[5] The team lost a rematch against the Giants. Midway through their next game against the Washington Redskins, a brawl between the two teams erupted and had to be broken up by police. Coaches Kiesling and Handler were in the middle of the fight, while Rooney, a formerboxer, ran to join his team, until he realized that it would be a breach of protocol for an NFL owner to get into a fight with opposing players. The Redskins would go on to win the game, 42–20. Card-Pitt's Cliff Duggan was fined $200 for his role in the fight, however, Rooney paid his fine.
Losses then ensued against the Rams, Packers and Lions, and Grigas left the team to return home toMassachusetts. He had twice won the league rushing title, but had grown tired of losing and retired. Despite his sudden departure, he was named to theNew York Daily NewsAll-Pro team, and finished the season with 610 yards rushing, an average of 3.3 yards per carry. His departure was followed by a 49–7 loss to the Bears. The team's 0–10 season tied theBrooklyn Tigers for the league's worst record. The merger of the Chicago Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers was dissolved the day after the season ended. Only five teams since 1944 havegone winless in the NFL for an entire season: the1960 Dallas Cowboys (0–11–1), the1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0–14), the (strike shortened)1982 Baltimore Colts (0–8–1), the2008 Detroit Lions (0–16) and the2017 Cleveland Browns (0-16).
"The season couldn't have turned out any worse than this one."
The Card-Pitt punters averaged 32.7 yards per attempt,[6] which, as of 2021[update], is still the worst mark in NFL history. The team was 0–2 in field goal attempts, whileConway Baker missed four of his 15 extra point tries.
Card-Pitt passers had a 31% completion rate, and threw for just eight touchdowns; their total of 41 interceptions is still the third highest number in NFL history, even more remarkable given the season was incrementally lengthened to 12, 14, 16, and currently 17 games (the 1944 season had 10). McCarthy threw 13 interceptions, had no touchdown passes, and finished with aquarterback rating of 3.0.
Card-Pitt also had the worst run defense in the league, and were outscored 328–108 by opponents.
"The worst team in NFL history."
Eberle Schultz went from a winless 1944 season to anNFL Championship with Cleveland the following year. John Grigas returned to the NFL for three final seasons with the Boston Yanks, and led the team in rushing in 1946.Don Currivan played alongside Grigas for those three seasons, and ranked third in the league in receiving in 1947, and Currivan also saw played with theLos Angeles Rams, being part of the team that lost to Philadelphia in the1949 NFL Championship Game.
TackleChet Bulger and centerVince Banonis would be a part of the1947 Chicago Cardinals Championship team, while Banonis also played for the Detroit Lions, winning League Championships in1952 and1953 (on teams coached by Card-Pitt assistant coachBuddy Parker).
The Cardinals did not win a game again until October 14, 1945 (nearly three years to the day of their last win), when they beat theChicago Bears 23-14: while it was the Cardinals' only win of the 1945 season, this also ended a 29-game losing streak (an NFL record as of 2021). The Steelers, who had won their last game on November 28, 1943, ended a 14-game losing streak on October 21, 1945, beating theNew York Giants 21–7.
In 1947, both teams rose to the top of the league: the Cardinals finished 9–3, beating the Bears in their last game to win the Western Division - their first title since 1925 - while the Steelers finished tied with the Eagles for the Eastern Division.
The Steelers lost a one-game playoff to the Eagles 21–0 in driving snow and rain, and the following week, theChampionship Game saw the Cardinals beat the Eagles 28–21 to win their second NFL Championship (and most recent as of 2021).
In 2009, 65 years after merging for a season, the Steelers and the Cardinals (by then based inGlendale,Arizona) played each other inSuper Bowl XLIII.
The last remaining active member of Card-Pitt wasVince Banonis, who played his final NFL game in the1953 season, where he won the championship as a member of theDetroit Lions, although he missed the1943 and1945 seasons.
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 12 | atPhiladelphia Eagles | L 0–22 | 0–1 | |||
| 2 | September 18 | Washington Redskins | L 0–3 | 0–2 | |||
| 3 | October 1 | atNew York Giants | L 0–22 | 0–3 |
| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap | Sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 24 | Cleveland Rams | L 28–30 | 0–1 | Forbes Field | 30,968 | Recap | ||
| — | Bye | ||||||||
| 2 | October 8 | atGreen Bay Packers | L 7–34 | 0–2 | City Stadium | 16,535 | Recap | ||
| 3 | October 15 | atChicago Bears | L 7–34 | 0–3 | Wrigley Field | 29,940 | Recap | ||
| 4 | October 22 | atNew York Giants | L 0–23 | 0–4 | Polo Grounds | 40,734 | Recap | ||
| 5 | October 29 | atWashington Redskins | L 20–42 | 0–5 | Griffith Stadium | 35,540 | Recap | ||
| 6 | November 5 | Detroit Lions | L 6–27 | 0–6 | Forbes Field | 17,743 | Recap | ||
| 7 | November 12 | atDetroit Lions | L 7–21 | 0–7 | Briggs Stadium | 13,239 | Recap | ||
| 8 | November 19 | Cleveland Rams | L 6–33 | 0–8 | Comiskey Park | 14,732 | Recap | ||
| 9 | November 26 | Green Bay Packers | L 20–35 | 0–9 | Comiskey Park | 7,158 | Recap | ||
| 10 | December 3 | Chicago Bears | L 7–49 | 0–10 | Forbes Field | 9,069 | Recap | ||
| Note: Intra-division opponents are inbold text. | |||||||||
| 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 | |
| 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 | |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rams | 3 | 13 | 0 | 14 | 30 |
| Card-Pitt | 0 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 28 |
atForbes Field,Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Scoring Drives:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Card-Pitt | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Packers | 7 | 14 | 0 | 13 | 34 |
atEast Stadium,Green Bay, Wisconsin
Scoring Drives:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Card-Pitt | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Bears | 7 | 13 | 0 | 14 | 34 |
atWrigley Field,Chicago,Illinois
Scoring Drives:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Card-Pitt | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Giants | 0 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 23 |
atPolo Grounds,New York, New York
Scoring Drives:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Card-Pitt | 0 | 0 | 7 | 13 | 20 |
| Redskins | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 | 42 |
atGriffith Stadium,Washington, D.C.
Scoring Drives:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lions | 21 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 27 |
| Card-Pitt | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
atForbes Field,Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Scoring Drives:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Card-Pitt | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Lions | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
atBriggs Stadium,Detroit,Michigan
Scoring Drives:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rams | 6 | 6 | 7 | 14 | 33 |
| Card-Pitt | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
atComiskey Park,Chicago,Illinois
Scoring Drives:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 7 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 35 |
| Card-Pitt | 7 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
atComiskey Park,Chicago,Illinois
Scoring Drives:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bears | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 | 49 |
| Card-Pitt | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
atForbes Field,Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Scoring Drives:
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| Franchise | |
| Stadiums | |
| Culture | |
| Lore | |
| Rivalries | |
| Division championships (7) | |
| Conference championships (1) | |
| League championships (2) | |
| Retired numbers | |
| Current league affiliations |
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