Unique perspectives on the daily sports topics that matter most. What happened: Colts owner Bob Irsay began looking to relocate his team in 1983 while facing a stadium issue, declining attendance and ongoing squabbles with city leaders. 38 responses to “ Native American groups ask NFL to stop using all names, images, and logos ” klutch14u says: July 7, 2020 at 11:46 am. The Jets even changed their team colors from black and yellow to green and white (see photos below). Permanently suspended operations in 1927. In fact, more than a fourth of today’s NFL teams changed names at some point during their existence. The Cowboys eventually gained the upper hand in popularity despite the Texans winning the AFL title in 1962, which prompted team owner Lamar Hunt to seek another home. SHARE. FOX Sports Senior NFL Writer Alex Marvez looks back at the history of the current 11 franchises that are now based in a different city from where they initially started. After just one year as the Braves, the franchise was renamed to the Redskins in 1933, four years before the team moved from Boston to Washington. In 1922, they changed their name to the Bears. Mark Lane 7/14/2020. One day after the Maryland state legislature began the process of trying to claim the Colts as part of eminent domain, Irsay quickly hired 14 Mayflower trucks to haul his team’s property to Indianapolis in the middle of the night. BY Scott Allen. No NFL franchise has folded since 1952. The announcement of the new 'Baltimore Browns' for 1996 was made midway through the 1995 season. Athletes, like other celebrities, have changed their names for various reasons: to make it catchy, to increase popularity among fans, for religious reasons, etc. What happened: The Lions initially began play in the NFL as the Portsmouth (Ohio) Spartans in 1930. There have been a handful of big-time moves, with some of the most notable names in NFL history switching organizations for the first time ever. 1. The franchise was first based in Boston. The franchise played in Beantown for five years before Marshall, who had taken ownership control, moved it to his home base of Washington D.C. because of tepid fan support and financial losses that reportedly totaled $100,000 (which is roughly $1.7 million today based on inflation rate). Here are 11 current teams that changed their team name. Richards bought the Spartans and rebranded the club as the Lions to play off the popularity of the Detroit Tigers baseball team. Connect with friends faster than ever with the new Facebook app. NFL Teams by the Year They Were Established . The nickname comes from then-mayor Harold Roe Bartle, whose nickname was "Chief.". One year after he acquired an NFL franchise in Boston, George Preston Marshall changed the team’s nickname from Braves to Redskins. We've documented how the Steelers merged with the Eagles in 1943 and the Cardinals in 1944, but they would qualify for this list nonetheless. In 1953, the NFL awarded Carroll Rosenbloom the properties of the Dallas Texans, which played one season before folding. Although Washington would become the first NFL team this century to change names, they wouldn’t be the first franchise to do so. Do Not Sell my Personal Info. Of those teams, only two are still in operation as of 2020 (denoted in bold): Akron Pros: Changed name to Akron Indians in 1926. The 1920: The Arizona Cardinals were the Chicago Cardinals from 1920 until 1959, then they moved to and played in St. Louis until 1987. 16 Famous Professional Athletes Who Changed Their Names. Detroit radio magnate G.A. George Preston Marshall and three others acquired an NFL franchise in 1932 and named it the "Boston Braves" after … The Three Mothers Shares Untold Stories of MLK Jr., Malcolm X, James Baldwin's Moms. The move paid huge dividends and the Chargers later named their stadium after Murphy for 17 seasons until selling the corporate rights to Qualcomm. Arizona Cardinals. What NFL teams have changed nicknames? What happened: George Preston Marshall and his partners were awarded an NFL franchise for the Boston market in 1932. The franchise was renamed the Bears in 1922. There are 32 NFL teams, and football enjoys the greatest yearly revenues of any American sport. Arizona Cardinals Atlanta Falcons Baltimore Ravens Buffalo Bills Carolina Panthers Chicago Bears Cincinnati Bengals Cleveland Browns Dallas Cowboys Denver Broncos Detroit Lions Green Bay Packers Houston Texans Indianapolis Colts Jacksonville Jaguars Kansas City Chiefs Las Vegas Raiders Los Angeles Chargers … To see each teams' current logo, you can head over to sportslogos.net's NFL page here. SHARE. The franchise has changed their name before, and will do so again. 1. The Pittsburgh Steelers, Chicago Bears, and New York Jets all rebranded their team names without moving. Art Modell moved the Cleveland Browns franchise to Baltimore, but changed their name. What happened: The Rams became the NFL’s first West Coast team when receiving permission to make the cross-country leap from Cleveland. All rights reserved Stanford's teams used the Indians' name from 1930 until 1972. What happened: Oilers owner Bud Adams, who had threatened to move his team in the past without public funding for stadium renovations, finally pulled the trigger and reached agreement with Nashville city officials when Houston’s mayor wouldn’t support building a new facility to replace the aging Astrodome. We'll count it as a name change. Latest COVID-19 updates. Before they were the Redskins, they were the Boston Braves for their inaugural season in 1932. Despite on-field success, the Great Depression and Portsmouth’s small population base made even the franchise’s short-term survival perilous. Right at your fingertips. Halas moved the Staleys from central Illinois three hours north to Chicago in 1921. The club played its first two seasons as the Decatur Staleys before moving to Chicago in 1921, where they played as the Chicago Staleys. #NFLTeams #TeamChallenge #CanYouNameIf you're new, Subscribe! 1,000+ troops to help vaccine distribution; at-home test surge coming; Johnson & Johnson applies for authorization. Help | Viewer Feedback | Press | Advertise With Us | Jobs | FOX Cincy | RSS | Site Map What happened: The Chargers made their 1960 AFL debut in Los Angeles sharing a stadium with the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams, who were a far more popular draw. The Texans were renamed the Chiefs upon their Kansas City arrival. Membership in the National Football League (NFL) is certified by a franchise. Which 11 current NFL teams changed their names? MORRIS: The Cleveland Indians have launched a formal name review. It wouldn't make much sense to keep the name in Kansas City. What happened: Faced with financial problems in the late 1950s, the NFL allowed the Cardinals’ move to St. Louis to block the upstart American Football League from gaining a foothold in the market. The options … Naturally, the Redskins name change opens the floor for reconsidering the names of other sports franchises. The club never posted a winning record while as the Titans. This video is unavailable. College and professional sports teams that have changed their team names and mascots after outcry over racist and offensive depictions of minority groups. If the late Bud Adams' franchise moved to Tennessee and kept the Oilers name, they wouldn't qualify for this list. What happened: When he couldn’t procure funding for a new stadium, Browns owner Art Modell struck a secret deal with the city of Baltimore. This is a tricky one. The following is a chronology of National Football League home stadiums, that is, all home stadiums of teams currently playing in the National Football League (NFL), and their locations and capacities. St. Bonaventure University drops the name Brown Squaws for its women’s teams ... men’s and women’s team names are officially changed from the Brown Indians to … In 1944, the Chicago Cardinals combined with the Pittsburgh Steelers to form "Card-Pitt" during the last full year of World War II. TWEET. Watch Queue Queue. Share this article share tweet text email link Curt Popejoy. Watch Queue Queue However, in 1999, the club changed its name to the Titans. Which 11 current NFL teams changed their names? Guess I … A newspaper columnist in San Diego (Jack Murphy) successfully lobbied for the struggling Chargers to head south. What happened: As owner of the Decatur Staleys, George 'Papa Bear' Halas helped the franchise become part of the inaugural group of NFL teams in 1920 (the league was known as the American Professional Football Association until 1922). The NFL team changed their name to what was considered racist - super-star Ivan: "Did they come up with that?" The Oilers played the 1996 season as a lame-duck club in front of sparse crowds, prompting the departure from Houston one year earlier than initially planned. The 2020 NFL free agency had a chance to be quite the blockbuster as the league’s new year began—ultra-boosted by the currently canceled sports-scape—and teams have not disappointed. The team was named the Braves but rechristened the Redskins in 1933. Bullets/Wizards owner Abe Pollin decided to change his team's name in 1995 after his team's name had become associated with violent overtones and the rising crime in Washington DC at the time. According to most accounts, the nickname was meant to honor head coach and Native American William Henry “Lone Star” Dietz, though some question whether Dietz was a Native American. Best & Worst Refinance Mortgage Companies of 2021, 19 Great Ways To Supplement Social Security Every Month That Many Didn't Know, © Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports, Expert: “This credit card is so good I signed up personally”. In 1944, the Chicago Cardinals combined with the Pittsburgh Steelers … New York Giants. When Lamar Hunt moved his AFL franchise from Dallas after the 1962 season, they were the Texans. California governor and unions clash over … While the records are treated as an expansion team, the infrastructure and organization clearly were not. The Houston Oilers and Kansas City Chiefs changed names when they moved to new places. July 15, 2020 10:54 am. May 20, 2014 @Hornets. 2020-07-24T09:02:02.516Z. However, the real change comes in 1943 when the team merged with the Pittsburgh Steelers during World War II and was known as the "Steagles" for that year. However, during the 1920s it is hard to tell if some teams changed nicknames from year to year or if each nickname represented a new franchise. Like us on Facebook to see similar stories. The Dallas Cowboys and Oakland Raiders both had … This article speaks about such famous professional athletes who have changed their names, and their reasons for doing so. Inside access. Boston Braves became Washington Redskins . The Ohio town on the banks of Ohio River still has the team's old stomping grounds, Spartan Municipal Stadium. EMAIL . The new name of the Washington NFL team caused disbelieving reactions.The NFL Washington Redskins announced yesterday that it will temporarily change its name to the Washington Football Team. Here’s a look at the notable NFL team name changes that have taken place over the years. At the same time, the NFL’s upstart Dallas Cowboys were trying to gain traction in the marketplace. In fact, more than a fourth of today's NFL teams changed names at some point during their existence. By the start of the 1920 APFA season, the nascent National Football League was composed of 15 franchises. That leaves primarily the Kansas City Chiefs, the Atlanta Braves and the Chicago … FS1 | FOX | FOX News | Fox Corporation | FOX Sports Supports | FOX Deportes, ™ and © 2020 Fox Media LLC and Fox Sports Interactive Media, LLC. The Titans still retain all of the Oilers' heritage though. Here's a look at the notable NFL team name changes … It was also not uncommon for two or more teams to have the same nickname during the same season. In fact, more than a fourth of today’s NFL teams changed names at some point during their existence. The Rams played there until owner Georgia Frontiere took the club to her hometown, filling the void created by the St. Louis Cardinals’ move to Arizona in 1988. From 1930-33, the franchise was known as the "Portsmouth Spartans." Do you remember the former team names of some of sports' most famous franchises? Find out by taking our latest quiz. The Charlotte Bobcats will officially become the Hornets next … In witnessing the speed with which culturally sensitive changes are happening, let’s take a guess at which current NFL teams will have different names by 2030. The University changed the mascot and name to Cardinal after meeting with Native American students who called the name an insult to their culture and heritage. Because of attendance concerns, the franchise shifted to a smaller stadium in the nearby city of Anaheim in 1980. Here's a timeline of when and how teams came into the league. The official source for NFL news, video highlights, fantasy football, game-day coverage, schedules, stats, scores and more. Submitted by Alpha on Fri, 2011/09/16 - 12:13pm. Alphabetical list of NFL Teams . The Eagles were built from the leftover assets of the defunct Frankford Yellow Jackets, which could constitute a team name change. A franchise is awarded by the league to each member club and serves as the league's authorization to operate as a professional football club in their city. The team moved to Phoenix from there and was known as … Davis then returned to the Bay Area after being given a sweetheart stadium deal by Alameda County officials. What happened: The Chiefs spent their first three seasons playing as the Dallas Texans in the American Football League. A renewed look at social justice and racial sensitivity, coupled with pressure from sponsors, compelled team owner Dan Snyder to retire the former name. Take Your Shot at $1,000,000 Compete to win the $1,000,000 jackpot & more cash prizes on Sunday. 8 Other Teams That Changed Their Nicknames. The … California-based Stanford is known as the Cardinal (the color), but the team previously had a very different name. The Cardinals then picked up stakes for Phoenix after being unable to get stadium funding, turning down other overtures made by Jacksonville, Memphis and Baltimore. W ashington’s NFL team announced on Monday they will no longer be called the “Redskins”, a name long described as racist.However, there are a host of other teams … “Pat Patriot,” the cartoon of a Minuteman preparing to snap a football drawn by the Boston Globe’s Phil Bissell, was chosen as the team’s logo soon after. The Chicago Bears are one of only two remaining NFL franchises, and for the vast majority of their existence we've known them as the Chicago Bears. From 1960-62, the club was known as the "New York Titans," a play on the NFL's Giants. However, they … What happened: After his attempt to relocate the Raiders to Los Angeles was vetoed by the NFL, owner Al Davis successfully sued to circumvent the league’s decision and bolted from Oakland. Here’s a look at the notable NFL team name changes that have taken place over the years. Microsoft may earn an Affiliate Commission if you purchase something through recommended links in this article. SHARE. Pollin held a contest for fans to vote on the team's new name. From 1933-39, the club was known as the Pittsburgh Pirates before Art Rooney worked with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette to find a new team name for 1940. Rosenbloom used the holdings of the Texans to found the Colts, which were named after a former AAFC team that went defunct after its NFL admission in 1950. Note that the list represents NFL franchises that no longer exist, not franchises/teams that relocated. 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