Before the game against Philadelphia, Brown told his players that Cleveland's successful years in the AAFC were at stake against the Eagles. "There's not only this season at stake, but four years of achievements", he told them. "I'm asking you to dedicate yourselves to preserving the reputation the Browns have made". The Eagles punted after their first drive stalled, and Cleveland's Don Phelps returned the kick 64 yards for a touchdown. The score was called back on a clipping penalty, however. Groza injured his arm on the play and sat out the rest of the game. Philadelphia made the first score of the game, a 17-yard field goal by Cliff Patton. The Browns tried to respond with a field goal of their own, but Chubby Grigg, substituting for Groza, missed the attempt. Jones scored a touchdown later in the first quarter on a pass from Graham, putting Cleveland in the lead. Another touchdown pass from Graham to Lavelli at the end of the second quarter put Cleveland ahead 14–3 at halftime. The Browns extended the lead on their first possession of the third quarter, an 80-yard drive capped by a short touchdown pass to end Mac Speedie. Turnovers by Philadelphia and then by the Browns set up a touchdown for the Eagles at the beginning of the fourth quarter to narrow Cleveland's lead to 11 points. The Browns added two touchdowns toward the end of the game, the first on a one-yard quarterback sneak by Graham and the second a short run by Bumgardner that was set up by a Lahr interception. The Browns had 316 passing yards and 141 rushing yards in the 35–10 win. A crowd of 71,237 people saw the game, an attendance record in Philadelphia and the ninth-largest in professional football history at the time. NFL commissioner Bert Bell named Graham the team's most valuable player and gave him a trophy, calling the Browns "the greatest team to ever play the game". Neale congratulated the Browns on the win, but critiqued the team for its reliance on passing, equating it to a basketball team. Brown said the team would not gloat over the victory, citing a long season ahead.