1940 Green Bay Packers season
| 1940 Green Bay Packers season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Curly Lambeau |
| Home field | City Stadium Wisconsin State Fair Park |
| Results | |
| Record | 6–4–1 |
| Division place | 2nd NFL Western |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
The 1940 Green Bay Packers season marked the franchise's 22nd season overall and their 20th year in the National Football League (NFL). In a scheduling idiosyncrasy, the Packers began 1940 playing six consecutive home games before finishing on the road for the last five contests of the season. The defending NFL champions, Green Bay finished with a 6–4–1 record under founder and head coach Curly Lambeau, earning them a second-place finish in the Western Conference.
Offseason
NFL draft
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | School/club team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9 | Hal Van Every | Halfback | Minnesota |
| 3 | 24 | Lou Brock | Back | Purdue |
| 5 | 39 | Esco Sarkkinen | End | Ohio State |
| 6 | 49 | Dick Cassiano | Back | Pittsburgh |
| 7 | 59 | Millard White | Tackle | Tulane |
| 8 | 69 | George Seeman | End | Nebraska |
| 9 | 79 | J. R. Manley | Guard | Oklahoma |
| 10 | 89 | Jack Brown | Back | Purdue |
| 11 | 99 | Don Guritz | Guard | Northwestern |
| 12 | 109 | Phil Gaspar | Tackle | USC |
| 13 | 119 | Ambrose Schindler | Quarterback | USC |
| 14 | 129 | Bill Kerr | End | Notre Dame |
| 15 | 139 | Mel Brewer | Guard | Illinois |
| 16 | 149 | Ray Andrus | Back | Vanderbilt |
| 17 | 159 | Archie Kodros | Center | Michigan |
| 18 | 169 | Jim Gillette | Halfback | Virginia |
| 19 | 179 | Al Matuza | Center | Georgetown |
| 20 | 189 | Jim Reeder | Tackle | Illinois |
| 21 | 194 | Vince Eichler | Back | Cornell |
| 22 | 199 | Henry Luebcke | Tackle | Iowa |
Regular season
Schedule
| Game | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap | Sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 15 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 27–20 | 1–0 | City Stadium | 11,657 | Recap | ||
| 2 | September 22 | Chicago Bears | L 10–41 | 1–1 | City Stadium | 22,557 | Recap | ||
| 3 | September 29 | Chicago Cardinals | W 31–6 | 2–1 | Wisconsin State Fair Park | 20,234 | Recap | ||
| — | Bye | ||||||||
| 4 | October 13 | Cleveland Rams | W 31–14 | 3–1 | City Stadium | 16,299 | Recap | ||
| 5 | October 20 | Detroit Lions | L 14–23 | 3–2 | City Stadium | 21,001 | Recap | ||
| 6 | October 27 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 24–3 | 4–2 | Wisconsin State Fair Park | 13,703 | Recap | ||
| 7 | November 3 | at Chicago Bears | L 7–14 | 4–3 | Wrigley Field | 45,434 | Recap | ||
| 8 | November 10 | at Chicago Cardinals | W 28–7 | 5–3 | Comiskey Park | 11,364 | Recap | ||
| 9 | November 17 | at New York Giants | L 3–7 | 5–4 | Polo Grounds | 28,262 | Recap | ||
| 10 | November 24 | at Detroit Lions | W 50–7 | 6–4 | University of Detroit Stadium | 26,019 | Recap | ||
| 11 | December 1 | at Cleveland Rams | T 13–13 | 6–4–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 16,249 | Recap | ||
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | |||||||||
Standings
| NFL Western Division | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | PF | PA | STK | ||
| Chicago Bears | 8 | 3 | 0 | .727 | 6–2 | 238 | 152 | W2 | |
| Green Bay Packers | 6 | 4 | 1 | .600 | 4–3–1 | 238 | 155 | T1 | |
| Detroit Lions | 5 | 5 | 1 | .500 | 4–3–1 | 138 | 153 | L1 | |
| Cleveland Rams | 4 | 6 | 1 | .400 | 2–5–1 | 171 | 191 | T1 | |
| Chicago Cardinals | 2 | 7 | 2 | .222 | 2–5–1 | 139 | 222 | L3 | |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
| NFL Eastern Division | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | PF | PA | STK | ||
| Washington Redskins | 9 | 2 | 0 | .818 | 6–2 | 245 | 142 | W1 | |
| Brooklyn Dodgers | 8 | 3 | 0 | .727 | 6–2 | 186 | 120 | W4 | |
| New York Giants | 6 | 4 | 1 | .600 | 5–2–1 | 131 | 133 | L1 | |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 2 | 7 | 2 | .222 | 1–6–1 | 60 | 178 | L1 | |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 1 | 10 | 0 | .091 | 1–7 | 111 | 211 | L1 | |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Roster
| Green Bay Packers roster | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers |
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen Rookies and first-year players in italics | |||||||
References
Further reading
- Cliff Christl, The Greatest Story in Sports: Green Bay Packers, 1919–2019. 4 volumes. Stevens Point, WI: KCI Sports Publishing, 2021.
- Larry D. Names, The History of the Green Bay Packers: The Lambeau Years, Part Two. Wautoma, WI: Angel Press of Wisconsin, 1989.
- Arch Ward, The Green Bay Packers. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1946.