New York Yankees

First Game Played September 8, 1946 Last Game Played December 4, 1949

1946: Dan Topping who was a longtime owner of the NFL’s Brooklyn Dodgers and President of the New York Yankees in baseball, was forced to merge with the Boston Yanks in 1945 due to a shortage of players and financial struggles. Instead of reestablishing the Dodgers, Topping agreed to join the All-American Football Conference and formed a team called the New York Yankees. Topping was able to take several players along with him to the AAFC’s Yankees and also had a top coach in Ray Flaherty who had won the 1942 NFL Championship with the Washington Redskins. It was clear early that the Yankees were one of the best teams in the AAFC as they won their first game on the road against the San Francisco 49ers 21-7 on September 8th. Due to the baseball season, the Yankees had to start the season on the road, posting a 2-1-1 record. The Yankees would beat the Buffalo Bisons 21-13 in their home debut on October 4th. Following a 7-0 loss to the Cleveland Browns on Columbus Day, the Yankees would run off a five game winning streak that clinched the Eastern Division in the AAFC. The Yankees would go on to finish the regular season with a record of 10-3-1, which was seven games better than any other team in the AAFC East. The Yankees would face the Cleveland Browns in the first AAFC Championship Game on December 22nd. The Browns who had beaten the Yankees twice in the regular season again won the game 14-9 at Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium.

1947: Despite opening the season with a 28-24 loss to the Buffalo Bills, the New York AAFC Yankees were even better in their second season. They would rebound from their opening week loss by beating the Chicago Rockets 48-26 in their home opener, before embarking on a four game road trip in which they took three of four games, losing only to the Cleveland Browns 26-17. The Yankees would go unbeaten in their final eight games, with the only blemish being a 28-28 tie against the Browns at Yankee Stadium on November 23rd. The New York Yankees would finish the season with a record of 11-2-1 and once again easily won the Eastern Division in the All-American Football Conference. The Yankees would face the Cleveland Browns for the AAFC Championship again on December 14th, with the game this time at Yankee Stadium. However, the result was the same as the Browns the dominant team of the league would eventually win the AAFC Championship Game all four seasons beat the Yankees 14-3.

1948: After losing the first two AAFC Title Games, the New York Yankees looked to be the best team in the East again, as they began the season with a solid 21-3 win over the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field. However, the Yankees struggled over the next three weeks, including two losses to the Baltimore Colts, which would cost Coach Ray Flaherty his job. Flaherty’s replacement Red Strader would not fare much better in Week 5, losing 20-10 to the Los Angeles Dons. Following a win over the Buffalo Bills, the Yankees would lose another two straight the San Francisco 49ers and Cleveland Browns. After a 2-6 start the Yankees would finish strong, taking four of their last six games, but a return trip to the AAFC Championship Game was just out of reach as they finished with a record 6-8, just one game behind the Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Colts who finished tied atop the division at 7-7.

1949: Heading into their fourth and final season, the New York Yankees merged with the Brooklyn Dodgers. The team would become the Brooklyn-New York Yankees, but were Brooklyn in name only as the Yankees management remained in place. After struggling most of 1948, the Yankees rose again to be one of the top teams in the AAFC which now was down to seven teams in one division, with the top four teams reaching the playoffs. The Yankees started the season strong, winning six of their first seven games. The only loss was to the Cleveland Browns in Week 2. The Yankees would stumble at the end of the season, losing three of their last five games as they slipped to third place with a record of 8-4. In the playoffs the Yankees would face the San Francisco 49ers, who beat them in the final game of the regular season 35-14 to earn home field for their playoff match. Once again the 49ers would best the Yankees, winning 17-7 to advance to the AAFC Championship Game, where they would lose to the Browns. The Cleveland Browns would win the AAFC in all four seasons, and along with the 49ers and Baltimore Colts joined the NFL in 1950. With two New York teams already in the NFL, the Yankees despite their success would be on the outside looking in. The Yankees would fold along with the All-American Football Conference as their players were divided between the NFL’s New York Giants and New York Bulldogs. The Bulldogs, would become the New York Yanks and takeover Yankee Stadium, playing just two seasons before moving to Dallas. Yankee Stadium would later become home to the New York Giants.

©MMXV Tank Productions. Stats researched by Frank Fleming, all information, and team names are property of the National Football League. This site is not affiliated with the Buffalo Bills or the AAFC. This site is maintained for research purposes only. All logos used on this page were from Chris Creamer’s Sports Logos Page.
Page created on March 14, 2015. Last updated on March 14, 2015 at 9:26 pm ET.