1945 Cleveland Rams season
The 1945 Cleveland Rams season was the team's eighth year with the National Football League and the ninth and final season in Cleveland. Led by the brother tandem of head coach Adam Walsh and general manager Chile Walsh, and helmed by future Hall of Fame quarterback Bob Waterfield, the Rams franchise finished 9-1 before winning its first NFL Championship by defeating the Washington Redskins, 15-14, at Cleveland Stadium. Other stars on the team included receiver Jim Benton and back Jim Gillette, who gained more than 100 yards in the title game.
One month after winning the championship, team owner Dan Reeves, frustrated by continuing financial losses and anxious over the startup in the coming year of the All-America Football Conference Cleveland Browns, moved the team to Los Angeles, marking the first and only time an NFL champion has played the following season in another city.
Off season
NFL Draft
Schedule
Standings
Regular season
Week 2: vs. Chicago Cardinals
Week 3: vs. Chicago Bears
Week 4: at Green Bay Packers
at East Stadium, Green Bay, Wisconsin- Game attendance: 24,607
GB – Comp 1 run
GB – Fritsch 3 run
CLE – Colella 6 pass from Waterfield
CLE – Greenwood 1 run
CLE – Colella 5 run
Week 5: at Chicago Bears
at Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois- Game attendance: 28,273
CLE – Colella 3 run
CLE – Gehrke 10 run
CHI – Margarita 1 run
CHI – Margarita 42 pass from Luckman
CHI – Gallameau 2 run
CLE – Greenwood 8 run
CLE – Benton 21 pass from Waterfield
CLE – Colella 18 pass from Reisz
Week 6: at Philadelphia Eagles
Week 7: at New York Giants
Week 8: vs. Green Bay Packers
Week 9: at Chicago Cardinals
Week 10: at Detroit Lions
Week 11: vs. Boston Yanks
Post season
NFL Championship Game: vs. Washington Redskins
In the first quarter, the Redskins had the ball at their own 5-yard line. Dropping back into the end zone, quarterback Sammy Baugh threw, but the ball hit the goal post and bounced back to the ground in the end zone. Under the rules at the time, this was ruled as a safety and thus gave the Rams a 2–0 lead.In the second quarter, Baugh suffered bruised ribs and was replaced by Frank Filchock. Filchock threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Steve Bagarus to give the Redskins a 7–2 lead. But the Rams scored just before halftime when rookie quarterback Bob Waterfield threw a 37-yard touchdown pass to Jim Benton. Waterfield's ensuing extra point was partially
blocked, with the ball teetering on the crossbar, but it dropped over to give Cleveland a 9–7 lead.
In the third quarter, the Rams increased their lead when Jim Gillette scored on a 44-yard touchdown reception, but this time the extra point was missed. The Redskins then came back to cut their deficit to 15–14 with Seymour's 8-yard touchdown catch from Filchock. In the fourth quarter, Washington kicker Joe Aguirre missed two field goals attempts, of 46 and 31 yards, that could have won the game.
Roster
Bold denotes player on the roster on the official NFL roster at the end of 1945 season.| Name | Position | Height | Weight | 1945 Games | 1945 Starts | Years in NFL | University | Notes |
| Graham Armstrong | Tackle | 6'2" | 215 | 1 | 0 | 2 | John Carroll | |
| Jim Benton | End | 6'3" | 195 | 9 | 5 | 7 | Arkansas | |
| David Bernard | Fullback | 5'10" | 197 | 7 | 0 | 2 | Mississippi | |
| Gil Bouley | Tackle | 6'2" | 233 | 6 | 6 | 1 | Boston College | |
| Thomas Colella | Halfback | 5'11-" | 185 | 10 | 1 | 4 | Canisius | |
| Bob DeLauer | Center | 6'1" | 213 | 2 | 2 | 1 | USA | |
| Roger Eason | Tackle | 6'2" | 220 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Oklahoma | |
| Fred Gehrke | Halfback | 5'11" | 190 | 10 | 7 | 2 | Utah | |
| James Gillette | Halfback | 6'1-" | 185 | 10 | 7 | 3 | Virginia | |
| Don Greenwood | Fullback | 5'11" | 191 | 9 | 6 | 1 | Illinois | |
| Ray Hamilton | End | 6'4" | 210 | 9 | 0 | 4 | Arkansas | |
| Roger Harding | Center | 6'2" | 195 | 6 | 0 | 1 | Cal | |
| Howard Hickey | End | 6'2" | 195 | 8 | 2 | 2 | Arkansas | |
| Jack Jacobs | Quarterback | 6'1" | 180 | 2 | 1 | 2 | Oklahoma | |
| Harvey Jones | Halfback | 6'0" | 175 | 9 | 2 | 2 | Baylor | |
| George Koch | Halfback | 6'1" | 200 | 5 | 0 | 1 | St. Mary's of Texas | |
| Floyd Konetsky | End | 6'1" | 195 | 10 | 3 | 2 | University of Miami | |
| William Lazetich | Guard | 6'1-" | 195 | 10 | 7 | 1 | Montana | |
| Leslie Lear | Guard | 5'11" | 223 | 9 | 1 | 2 | Manitoba University | |
| Butch Levy | Tackle | 6'0" | 260 | 7 | 1 | 1 | Minnesota | |
| Elvin Liles | Guard | 5'9-" | 195 | 8 | 0 | 3 | Oklahoma A&M | Started season with Detroit Lions. |
| Riley Matheson | Guard | 6'2" | 210 | 10 | 10 | 7 | Texas Mines | |
| Arthur Morgenthal | Guard | 5'11" | 215 | 10 | 2 | 1 | Notre Dame | |
| Raymond Monaco | Guard | 5'10-" | 215 | 1 | 0 | 3 | Holy Cross | |
| Rudy Mucha | Guard | 6'1-" | 246 | 3 | 0 | 2 | Washington | Ended season with Chicago Bears. |
| Steve Nemeth | Quarterback | 5'10" | 172 | 9 | 3 | 1 | Notre Dame | |
| George Phillips | Quarterback | 6'3-" | 215 | 1 | 0 | 1 | UCLA | |
| Steve Pritko | End | 6'2" | 210 | 10 | 10 | 3 | Villanova | |
| Albie Reisz | Quarterback | 5'9" | 170 | 10 | 0 | 2 | Southeastern | |
| William Reith | Center | 5'11-" | 203 | 1 | 0 | 3 | Carnegie Tech | |
| Ralph Ruthstrom | Fullback | 6'4" | 208 | 6 | 2 | 1 | Southern Methodist | |
| Mike Scarry | Center | 5'11" | 220 | 10 | 10 | 2 | Waynesburg University | |
| Eberle Schultz | Tackle | 6'4" | 245 | 10 | 10 | 5 | Oregon State | |
| Bob Shaw | End | 6'3" | 229 | 5 | 0 | 1 | Ohio State | |
| Rudy Sikich | Tackle | 6'1" | 219 | 6 | 2 | 1 | Minnesota | |
| Bob Waterfield | Quarterback | 6'1" | 191 | 10 | 6 | 1 | UCLA | 1945 NFL Most Valuable Player |
| Pat West | Fullback | 6'1" | 204 | 10 | 7 | 1 | USC | |
| Joe Winkler | Center | 6'1" | 200 | 8 | 0 | 1 | Purdue | |
| James Worden | Halfback | 5'10" | 180 | 5 | 5 | 1 | Waynesburg | |
| Walter Zirinsky | Halfback | 5'11-" | 187 | 5 | 0 | 1 | Lafayette University |
Awards and records
- Adam Walsh, Coach of the Year
- Bob Waterfield, League Most Valuable Player
- Bob Waterfield, NFL leader, Touchdowns
Footnotes