The biggest financial issue was the emergence of a new league. Many players back from the war found themselves wooed by both the NFL and the new All- American Football Conference (AAFC). Organized by Chicago Tribune editor Art Ward, the AAFC had attracted wealthy owners for every franchise and enthusiastically ignored the boundaries of the NFL draft to lure rookies and veterans alike to the new league. Before the war, players got an average of $150 a game; by 1949 the average minimum salary for a ten-game season was $5,000, and most players earned much more. Led by former Notre Dame star Jim Crowley, the AAFC brought football franchises to New York, Brooklyn, Buffalo, Miami, Cleveland, Chicago, and San Francisco. The NFL met the challenge by hiring Bert Bell, part owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers, as its commissioner. Bell led the NFL through fourteen years of tremendous growth......
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