The 1964 St. Louis Cardinals season was the team's 45th year with the National Football League (NFL) and the fifth season in St. Louis.
| 1964 St. Louis Cardinals season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Wally Lemm |
| Home field | Busch Stadium (I) |
| Results | |
| Record | 9–3–2 |
| Division place | 2nd NFL Eastern |
| Playoff finish | Won NFL Playoff Bowl (vs. Packers) 24–17 |
The Cardinals (9–3–2) were the runner-up in the Eastern Conference, finishing a half game behind the Cleveland Browns (10–3–1), who won the NFL championship game on December 27. The Cardinals tied the Browns in Cleveland in September and defeated them in St. Louis in December.
As the conference runner-up, the Cardinals played the Green Bay Packers of the Western Conference in the third place Playoff Bowl in Miami, Florida. Held on January 3 at the Orange Bowl, St. Louis won in an upset, 24–17.[1][2][3] It was the Cardinals' only postseason appearance between 1948 and 1974.
Offseason
NFL Draft
Regular season
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 12 | at Dallas Cowboys | W 16–6 | 1–0 | Cotton Bowl | 36,605 | |
| 2 | September 20 | at Cleveland Browns | T 33–33 | 1–0–1 | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 76,954 | |
| 3 | September 27 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 23–13 | 2–0–1 | Kezar Stadium | 30,969 | |
| 4 | October 4 | at Washington Redskins | W 23–17 | 3–0–1 | D.C. Stadium | 49,219 | |
| 5 | October 12 | at Baltimore Colts^ | L 27–47 | 3–1–1 | Memorial Stadium | 60,213 | |
| 6 | October 18 | Washington Redskins | W 38–24 | 4–1–1 | Busch Stadium | 23,748 | |
| 7 | October 25 | Dallas Cowboys | L 13–31 | 4–2–1 | Busch Stadium | 28,253 | |
| 8 | November 1 | at New York Giants | L 17–34 | 4–3–1 | Yankee Stadium | 63,072 | |
| 9 | November 8 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 34–30 | 5–3–1 | Busch Stadium | 28,245 | |
| 10 | November 15 | New York Giants | T 10–10 | 5–3–2 | Busch Stadium | 29,608 | |
| 11 | November 22 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 38–13 | 6–3–2 | Franklin Field | 60,671 | |
| 12 | November 29 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | W 21–20 | 7–3–2 | Pitt Stadium | 27,807 | |
| 13 | December 6 | Cleveland Browns | W 28–19 | 8–3–2 | Busch Stadium | 31,585 | |
| 14 | December 13 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 36–34 | 9–3–2 | Busch Stadium | 24,636 | |
| Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text. | |||||||
^ The game with the Baltimore Colts on October 12 was originally scheduled for St. Louis,
but was moved to Baltimore due to the baseball Cardinals' participation in the World Series.
Game summaries
Week 2: at Cleveland Browns
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 10 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 33 |
| Browns | 6 | 10 | 7 | 10 | 33 |
at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio
- Date: September 20
- Game time: 12:30 p.m. CDT
- Game weather: 67 °F (19 °C), relative humidity 87%, wind 7 mph (11 km/h)
- Game attendance: 76,954
- Referee: Tom Bell
- TV announcers (CBS): Jack Drees (STL) (second half) and Ken Coleman (CLE) (first half) (play-by-play), Bill Fischer (STL) (second half) and Warren Lahr (CLE) (first half) (color commentators)
- Pro-Football-Reference.com
| Game information |
|---|
Week 13: vs. Cleveland Browns
| Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browns | 3 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 19 |
| Cardinals | 0 | 21 | 7 | 0 | 28 |
at Busch Stadium I, St. Louis, Missouri
- Date: December 6
- Game time: 1:00 p.m. CST
- Game weather: 18 °F (−8 °C), relative humidity 98%, wind 7.8 mph (13 km/h), wind chill 8 °F (−13 °C)
- Game attendance: 31,585
- TV announcers (CBS): Ken Coleman (CLE) (second half) and Jack Drees (STL) (first half) (play-by-play), Warren Lahr (CLE) (second half) and Bill Fischer (STL) (first half) (color commentators)
- Pro-Football-Reference.com
| Game information |
|---|
Standings
| NFL Eastern Conference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK | ||
| Cleveland Browns | 10 | 3 | 1 | .769 | 9–2–1 | 415 | 293 | W1 | |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 9 | 3 | 2 | .750 | 8–2–2 | 357 | 331 | W4 | |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 6–6 | 312 | 313 | L1 | |
| Washington Redskins | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 5–7 | 307 | 305 | L2 | |
| Dallas Cowboys | 5 | 8 | 1 | .385 | 4–7–1 | 250 | 289 | W1 | |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 5–7 | 253 | 315 | L1 | |
| New York Giants | 2 | 10 | 2 | .167 | 2–8–2 | 241 | 399 | L4 | |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Postseason
Playoff Bowl
| Round | Date | Opponent | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Playoff Bowl | January 3, 1965 | Green Bay Packers | W 24–17 | Orange Bowl | 56,218 |