NFL Championship: Los Angeles Rams travel to face Cleveland Browns at Cleveland Municipal Stadium for the league title. Winner is the NFL champion for the season. Loser's year ends.
Los Angeles Rams at Cleveland Browns for the 1950 league title. The NFL Championship is the season's final game in this era, the one that decides which franchise's name goes on the championship ledger. For Cleveland Browns, the home field at Cleveland Municipal Stadium is asked to be a player; for Los Angeles Rams, the road environment is supposed to be the test that breaks lesser teams. Coaches will lean on what worked all year. Players will lean on what their bodies have left in them.
Los Angeles Rams and Cleveland Browns have outlasted everyone else in the league this 1950 season. One walks out of Cleveland Municipal Stadium with the title; the other walks out with a brutal what-if. Pre-Super Bowl era: the NFL Championship is the title game itself. There is no next round.
Los Angeles Rams versus Cleveland Browns in the NFL Championship. The teams who reach this round have already proven they survive a long schedule; the stats that matter most now are the ones that compress: scoring differential, red-zone efficiency, turnover margin. At this stage of the year, the simple math is that defenses tighten and the team that protects the ball wins more often than the team that scores the most. Whichever side of Los Angeles Rams-Cleveland Browns cleans up the careless plays first usually walks out with the result. Conservative-game expectations should not surprise the reader; both staffs know exactly what worked all season and will lean hard on what travels. The early answer is the kicking game, where any swing of field position compounds.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Browns | 10-2 | W6 |
| New York Giants | 10-2 | W6 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 6-6 | L4 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 6-6 | W1 |
| Washington Redskins | 3-9 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Bears | 9-3 | W1 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 9-3 | W1 |
| Detroit Lions | 6-6 | L1 |
| Green Bay Packers | 3-9 | L2 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 3-9 | W1 |
| Baltimore Colts | 1-11 | L5 |
No archived broadcast on file for this game yet. If you find one, please report it.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Rams | 14 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 1414282828 |
| Cleveland Browns | 7 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 713203030 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Rams | Glenn Davis 82 yard pass from Bob Waterfield ( Bob Waterfield kick) | 7-0 |
| Browns | Dub Jones 27 yard pass from Otto Graham ( Lou Groza kick) | 7-7 |
| Rams | Dick Hoerner 3 yard rush ( Bob Waterfield kick) | 14-7 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Browns | Dante Lavelli 37 yard pass from Otto Graham | 14-13 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Browns | Dante Lavelli 39 yard pass from Otto Graham ( Lou Groza kick) | 14-20 |
| Rams | Dick Hoerner 1 yard rush ( Bob Waterfield kick) | 21-20 |
| Rams | Larry Brink 6 yard fumble return ( Bob Waterfield kick) | 28-20 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Browns | Rex Bumgardner 14 yard pass from Otto Graham ( Lou Groza kick) | 28-27 |
| Browns | Lou Groza 16 yard field goal | 28-30 |
| Rams | Browns | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 22 | 22 |
| Total Yards | 418 | 414 |
| Turnovers | 5 | 4 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 18/32 | 22/33 |
| Pass yards | 312 | 298 |
| Pass TD | 1 | 4 |
| Interceptions | 5 | 1 |
| Net pass yards | 301 | 257 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 36 | 25 |
| Rush yards | 106 | 116 |
| Rush TD | 2 | 0 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 0 | 3 |
| Fumbles lost | 0 | 3 |
| Penalties | 4 | 3 |
| Penalty yards | 48 | 25 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAM | |||||
| Bob Waterfield | 18/31 | 312 | 1 | 4 | |
| Norm Van Brocklin | 0/1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| CLE | |||||
| Otto Graham | 22/33 | 298 | 4 | 1 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAM | ||||
| Dick Hoerner | 24 | 86 | 2 | 24 |
| Vitamin Smith | 4 | 11 | 0 | 15 |
| Glenn Davis | 6 | 6 | 0 | 9 |
| Bob Waterfield | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Ralph Pasquariello | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| CLE | ||||
| Otto Graham | 12 | 99 | 0 | 21 |
| Marion Motley | 6 | 9 | 0 | 10 |
| Dub Jones | 2 | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| Rex Bumgardner | 5 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAM | ||||
| Tom Fears | 9 | 136 | 0 | 44 |
| Glenn Davis | 2 | 88 | 1 | 82 |
| Vitamin Smith | 3 | 46 | 0 | 38 |
| Elroy Hirsch | 4 | 42 | 0 | 23 |
| CLE | ||||
| Dante Lavelli | 11 | 128 | 2 | 39 |
| Dub Jones | 4 | 80 | 1 | 31 |
| Rex Bumgardner | 4 | 46 | 1 | 15 |
| Horace Gillom | 1 | 29 | 0 | 29 |
| Mac Speedie | 1 | 17 | 0 | 17 |
| Marion Motley | 1 | -2 | 0 | -2 |
Cleveland Browns defeated Los Angeles Rams 30-28 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium in the NFL Championship. The final scoring play was Browns: Lou Groza 16 yard field goal. The result came down to the final possession; Cleveland Browns won by 2. Top line of the day: Bob Waterfield: 312 pass yards on 18-of-31, 1 TD, 4 INT. Cleveland Browns are crowned NFL champions for 1950.
Cleveland Browns walked out of Cleveland Municipal Stadium as the team that survived an NFL Championship Los Angeles Rams will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 30-28. The game stayed within 2 points throughout, the kind of contest where every drive felt like a referendum and every defensive stop carried twice its usual weight. The final scoring play came from Browns: Lou Groza 16 yard field goal. Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Cleveland Browns are league champions.
Cleveland Browns 30, Los Angeles Rams 28. Round: NFL Championship. Attendance: 29751. Q1: 3 scoring plays. Q2: 1 scoring play. Q3: 3 scoring plays. Q4: 2 scoring plays. Top performers: - Bob Waterfield: 312 pass yards on 18-of-31, 1 TD, 4 INT - Otto Graham: 99 rush yards on 12 carries - Tom Fears: 9 catches for 136 yards
NFL Championship, played at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Final: Los Angeles Rams 28, Cleveland Browns 30, with Cleveland Browns taking the result by 2. **First quarter**
- Rams: Glenn Davis 82 yard pass from Bob Waterfield ( Bob Waterfield kick) - Browns: Dub Jones 27 yard pass from Otto Graham ( Lou Groza kick) - Rams: Dick Hoerner 3 yard rush ( Bob Waterfield kick)
**Second quarter**
- Browns: Dante Lavelli 37 yard pass from Otto Graham
**Third quarter**
- Browns: Dante Lavelli 39 yard pass from Otto Graham ( Lou Groza kick) - Rams: Dick Hoerner 1 yard rush ( Bob Waterfield kick) - Rams: Larry Brink 6 yard fumble return ( Bob Waterfield kick)
**Fourth quarter**
- Browns: Rex Bumgardner 14 yard pass from Otto Graham ( Lou Groza kick) - Browns: Lou Groza 16 yard field goal
**Top performers**
- Bob Waterfield: 312 pass yards on 18-of-31, 1 TD, 4 INT - Otto Graham: 99 rush yards on 12 carries - Tom Fears: 9 catches for 136 yards
A 2-point margin in NFL Championship is the kind of result that defines reputations on both sidelines.