The New York Giants and the Washington Commanders franchise will meet for the 179th time in the regular season this Sunday at MetLife Stadium.
The series has been one of the NFL’s longest and storied going back to 1932 when the Washington team was playing in Boston as the Braves and played their games in a baseball stadium which was home to the Boston National League team of the same name.
The initial game between the two franchises pitted the New York Giants against the Boston Braves at Braves Field on October 9, 1932 in front of 10,000 onlookers.
The Braves won the game, 14-6, to record the first victory in Braves’ history.
Boston took a 7-0 lead in the second period on a two-yard run by Jim Musick.
The New York Times reported that Ray Flaherty scored the Giants’ touchdown on a pass from Jack Hagerty. Other accounts have Red Badgro scoring the touchdown. Hagerty’s PAT attempt was blocked, making the score, 7-6, at halftime.
Boston won the game on a interception/fumble in the fourth quarter when Flaherty’s lateral intended for Red Cagle ended up in the hands of Boston defender Algy Clark, who took it 55 yards to the house and the win.
Badgro and Flaherty would go on to become Pro Football Hall of Famers.
The Braves changed their name to the Redskins in 1933 and then moved to Washington in 1937. The team name was changed to the Washington Football Team in 2020 and then the Commanders before the 2022 season.
