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The Brooklyn Football Dodgers: The Other "Bums"

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Back in the struggling years of the National Football League - and there were many - teams would relocate and change nicknames like it was mandated in an agreement amongst the franchise owners.

Author Roger A. Godin tackles such a club, the Brooklyn (football) Dodgers, that operated from 1930-1943 (they were the Tigers in 1944) and played their home games at Ebbets Field. From 1920-1929 the franchise was the Dayton (OH) Triangles, until Brooklyn businessmen William B. Dwyer and John C. Depler purchased the team and relocated it to their home city. The club was eventually sold to Dan Topping and John Simms Kelly, years before the former became co-owner of the baseball juggernaut New York Yankees.

The claim to fame of the gridiron "Bums" occurred on October 22, 1939, in Ebbets Field; the Dodgers defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 23-14 in the first NFL game shown on TV. By 1942 the club was in a steep decline at the gate and had trouble putting together a roster due to World War II. Looking for a new beginning, the Dodgers became the Tigers in 1944, but ended that year 0-10. The club merged with the Boston Yanks in 1945 and the league eventually assigned all the Brooklyn players to that team due to a dispute with Topping.

As the Brooklyn Dodgers, the overall record was 60-90-21, with the highest division finish being second, which was achieved four times. The fans who may have cried, "Wait till next year," never had their dreams of a title fulfilled, but Godin shows that these Dodgers had a very unique run - while toting a pigskin - that should never be forgotten.