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NFL franchise moves and mergers

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Throughout the years, a number of teams in the National Football League (NFL) have either moved or merged.

In the early years, the NFL was not stable and teams moved frequently to survive, or were folded only to be resurrected in a different city with the same players and owners. The Great Depression era saw the movement of most surviving small-town NFL teams to the large cities to ensure survival. Franchise mergers were popular during World War II in response to the scarcity of players. Few of these relocations and mergers were accompanied with widespread controversy.

Franchise moves became far more controversial in the late twentieth century when a vastly more popular NFL, free from financial instability, allowed many franchises to abandon long-held strongholds for perceived financially greener pastures. While owners invariably cited financial difficulties as the primary factor in such moves, many fans bitterly disputed these contentions, especially in Baltimore, St. Louis, and Cleveland, each of which eventually received teams some years after their original franchises left. However, Los Angeles, the second-largest media market in the United States, has not had an NFL team since 1994.

Despite a promise to Congress not to relocate franchises in return for a law exempting the league from certain aspects of antitrust laws, making possible the AFL-NFL merger, several franchises relocated in the years since the merger.

Additionally, with the increasing suburbanization of the U.S., the building of new stadiums and other team facilities in the suburbs instead of the central city became popular from the 1970s on, though at the turn of the millennium a reverse shift back to the central city became somewhat evident.

Teams moving between cities/boroughs within their metropolitan area

Teams making more significant moves, in chronological order

Quasi-moves: movement of more or less intact teams from one city to another

The NFL considers these separate franchises but there is significant continuity from one to the other

  • Canton Bulldogs: mothballed for the 1924 season when the owner of the Cleveland Bulldogs bought it and took the players and nickname to Cleveland. Franchise resurrected in 1925
  • Duluth Eskimos: to Orange, NJ as the Orange Tornadoes in 1929 (separate franchises but same players)
  • Newark Tornadoes: The Newark franchise was forfeited to the league and ordered to be disposed of to the highest bidder after the 1930 season. The next franchise granted was the Boston Braves (now Washington Redskins franchise) in 1932. So, while it is possible that Newark franchise was sold to the Boston group in 1932, there is no documentation available. Neither Newark or Boston played in 1931.
  • Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers corporate entities and players (but not franchises) swap cities after the 1940 season after complex ownership deal.[2]
  • Boston Yanks franchise to New York City as the New York Bulldogs in 1949 (separate franchise but same owner and players)
  • New York Yanks (formerly New York Bulldogs) folded after the 1951 season; players transferred to new Dallas Texans franchise for the 1952 season
  • Dallas Texans: operated out of Hershey, PA for the last five games of the 1952 season, playing their last three games in Akron, OH. Franchise folded after season's end and players awarded to new Baltimore Colts franchise in 1953
  • Cleveland Browns: to Baltimore as the Ravens in 1996. In 1995 Browns owner Art Modell announced plans to move the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore for the 1996 season. The NFL, the city of Cleveland and Modell reach an agreement whereby the Browns franchise and history would remain in Cleveland to be resurrected by 1999. Modell was given a new franchise for Baltimore, made up of players from the 1995 Cleveland Browns

Franchise mergers

Temporary-moves, in chronological order

The following are not actually relocations, but temporary moves because these teams' home stadiums were either under construction or being rebuilt

Ultimate Disposition of the 14 Charter Franchises

By the start of the 1920 APFA season, the nacient National Football League was comprised of 14 franchses. Here's what happened to each of them (Teams existing as of 2006 in bold):

  • Akron Pros: Changed name to Akron Indians in 1926. Permanently suspended operations in 1927.
  • Buffalo All-Americans: Changed name to Buffalo Bisons in 1924, Buffalo Rangers in 1926, and changed back to Buffalo Bisons in 1927. Suspended operations in 1928. Resumed play in 1929, but folded following the season.
  • Canton Bulldogs: Cleveland Bulldogs in 1923. Suspended operations in 1924. Resumed play in Canton in 1925. Folded following 1926 season.
  • Chicago Cardinals: Merged with Pittsburgh Steelers for one year in 1944. Returned as an independent team in 1945. Moved to St Louis in 1960. Moved to Phoenix in 1988. Changed name to Arizona Cardinals in 1994.
  • Chicago Tigers: Folded following 1920 season.
  • Cleveland Tigers: Folded following 1921 season.
  • Columbus Panhandles: Changed name to Columbus Tigers in 1923. Folded following 1926 season.
  • Dayton Triangles: Franchise relocated and renamed Brooklyn Dodgers in 1930. Changed name to Brooklyn Tigers in 1944. Merged with Boston Yanks in 1945. Franchise canceled in 1945 by league; players assigned to Boston Yanks.
  • Decatur Staleys: Moved to Chicago in 1921. Changed name to Chicago Bears in 1922.
  • Detroit Heralds: Folded following 1920 season.
  • Hammond Pros: Folded following 1926 season.
  • Muncie Flyers: Folded following 1921 season.
  • Rochester Jeffersons: Folded following 1924 season.
  • Rock Island Independents: Folded following 1924 season.

See also

References

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