| Regular season | |
|---|---|
| Duration | September 25 – December 18, 1921 |
| Champions | Chicago Staleys |
Celts Pros KardexThe 1921 APFA season was the second season of the American Professional Football Association, which was renamed the National Football League in 1922.
At the league meeting in Akron, Ohio on April 30 prior to the season, the Association was reorganized, with Joe Carr of the Columbus Panhandles named as president. The Association's headquarters was moved to Columbus, Ohio, and a league constitution and by-laws were drafted, giving teams territorial rights, restricting player movements, and developing membership criteria for the franchises.
The league would play under the rules of college football, and official standings were issued for the first time so that there would be a clear champion: the most notable change was that only games played against league teams would count toward the standings, which had the dual effect of both encouraging independent teams (such as those from the Ohio League and the NYPFL) to join, and also causing those that did not join to fold within a few years, as NFL teams, particularly those competing for a championship, would be much less willing to play what were effectively exhibition games against teams that would not help them in the standings.
However, a number of teams had financial difficulties: some of the teams that played during the previous season, including the Chicago Tigers, had disbanded. The Association did increase to 21 teams, but four of the new teams (Brickley's New York Giants, the Cincinnati Celts, the Tonawanda Kardex, and the Washington Senators) only lasted a single season. New York and Tonawanda were particularly short-lived: New York lasted two games in the league, and Tonawanda a league-record one game, before leaving or folding. The Muncie Flyers also disbanded after the season, and even though the Cleveland Tigers changed their name to the Cleveland Indians, it still did not save them from folding after the season as well.
At one point, the Professional Football Researchers Association recognized a team by the name of the Syracuse Pros as joining and leaving the league in 1921; however, the league has not recognized the claim, and the PFRA has dropped this assertion in more recent years. The Syracuse professional team in question, which had never used the name "Pros", did intend to play at least seven games against APFA teams, but only played three, and there is no record of the league ever admitting the team into the league or of the team leaving the league. The only word of the Syracuse team joining the league came from the team itself.
The other new teams were the Evansville Crimson Giants, the Green Bay Packers, the Minneapolis Marines, and the Louisville Brecks. The Detroit Heralds became the Detroit Tigers, but folded mid-season, and its roster was absorbed by the Buffalo All-Americans.
After the season, the Packers were suspended following their admission to using Notre Dame players during the season, who had played under assumed names. Green Bay would return to the NFL a year later as a new franchise.[1]
The Staleys, who had moved from Decatur, Illinois, to Chicago before the season, were named the APFA Champions over the Buffalo All-Americans.
The league's teams salary cap was $1,800 per game.[2]
- ^ "The Taylorville Scandal" (PDF).
- ^ "A Few More Loose Ends 1922" (PDF). The Professional Football Researchers Association.