Los Angeles Dons

The Los Angeles Dons were an American football team in the now defunct All-America Football Conference from 1946 to 1949 that played in the Los Angeles Coliseum.

For most of their existence, the Dons compiled an average record, and never qualified for the AAFC playoffs. The Dons' high points were their two victories over the Cleveland Browns. (The Browns won all four AAFC titles and amassed a four-year record of 52-4-3 which included a perfect season. Their dominance is generally considered the biggest reason why the AAFC folded.) Unlike the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, and Baltimore Colts, the Dons were not one of the AAFC teams that remained intact when the AAFC merged with the National Football League in 1950: they merged with the crosstown Rams of the older league after the 1949 season.^[1]

The leader of the ownership group was Benjamin Lindheimer, a Chicago real estate and race track executive. Other owners included Louis B. Mayer, Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, and Don Ameche.^[2]

One Dons player, William Radovich, formerly of the NFL Detroit Lions, filed a lawsuit against the NFL after being blacklisted from playing or working in it afterwards. It led to the Supreme Court ruling that professional football, unlike baseball, was subject to antitrust laws.

The Dons' best seasons were from 1946–1948, although they never reached the playoffs. In 1949 the AAFC merged with the NFL, but the Dons were not one of the three teams admitted to the NFL. Those teams were the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, and the Baltimore Colts.

Season-By-Season

Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties

References

1. ^ James P. Quirk and Rodney D. Fort, Pay Dirt: The Business of Professional Team Sports, p. 438, ISBN 0691015740
2. ^ LA Times The Dons of L.A. Pro Sports, Jerry Crowe, September 13, 2006