FDR's New Deal NRA poster was the inspiration for naming the Philadelphia franchise
Where did the NFL teams get their names? In my previous post, I offered strategies and ideas for coming up with a cool name for your fantasy football team. One of my suggestions was to take a tip from the pros. Nearly all of the NFL team names have a tie with the city from which they hail, and my advice was to follow suit and have your fantasy team name have a connection with you. That got me to thinking: How exactly did each of the NFL team names originate? I did some digging, and this is what I found out:
Arizona Cardinals
The team now known as the Arizona Cardinals began as an amateur athletic club that was founded in 1898. The team was later moved to Normal Park, located on Racine Avenue, in Chicago, and given the name the Racine Normals. In 1901, team founder, Chris O’Brien, purchased used maroon jerseys for his team from the University of Chicago, but the colors had faded. O’Brien declared, “That’s not maroon, it’s cardinal red!” From that point on, the team was known as the Cardinals.
Atlanta Falcons
The name for the Falcons was chosen in a team naming contest. Julia Elliott, a high school teacher from Georgia, was the contest winner. Some of the many suggested names were the Bombers, Crackers, Fireballs, Firebirds, Knights, Rebels, Thrashers, and Thunderbirds.
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