him. His success with the Browns forced the rest of both leagues to adopt his methods. Many of his players and assistants eventually coached champions. Brown declined efforts to draft him to succeed Bert Bell as NFL commissioner, later founded the American Football League's Cincinnati Bengals, and later served on the NFL's key Competition Committee until his death in 1991. These and other AAFC innovations and personalities helped lay the groundwork for Professional Football's great success. Finally, the Browns' NFL Championship in their first year in the NFL and their domination of that league for the next decade, in retrospect, seem to have been harbingers of another upstart league that like the AAFC was ridiculed and reviled by the NFL and its supporters, but would eventually be recognized as the genesis of modern Professional Football: the American Football League of 1960–1969. AAFC standings W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties 1946 AAFC Championship: Cleveland 14, New York 9 (December 22 @ Cleveland) 1947 AAFC Championship: Cleveland 14, New York 3 (December 14 @ New York) 1948 Eastern Division playoff: Buffalo 28, Baltimore 17 (December 12 @ Baltimore) AAFC Championship: Cleveland 49, Buffalo 7 (December 19 @ Cleveland) 1949 Semifinal #1: Cleveland 31, Buffalo 21 (December 4 @ Cleveland) Semifinal #2: San Francisco 17, Brooklyn/New York 7 (December 4 @ San Francisco) AAFC Championship: Cleveland 21, San Francisco 7 (December 11 @ Cleveland) AAFC team - All-time standings Franchises are ranked by win percentage. As was the custom for professional football leagues in the 1940s, ties were not considered for the purpose of standings. Team colors are compiled from the Gridiron Uniform Database AAFC postseason games Championship games From 1946 to 1948 the champions of each division met in the AAFC championship game. In 1949, there was only one seven-team division, so the championship game was the final round of a four team tournament. Other playoff games In 1948, there was a tie for first place in the Eastern Division. In 1949, there was only one seven-team division, so the playoffs were a four team tournament. All-Star game The AAFC played an all-star game only once, following the 1949 season. This game, played in Houston and known as the "Shamrock Bowl", was the league's last game before the merger with the NFL. The champion Browns faced a team of All-Stars from the other six teams. AAFC awards Rookie of