The NFL season is winding down this week as the final week of the regular season begins this weekend.  So here are some facts you might, or might not know about some of the teams in the NFL.

  • The Rams moved from Los Angeles to St. Louis in 1995, but they were originally in Cleveland when they joined the league in 1937, and moved to Los Angeles in 1946.
  • The Cardinals moved from St. Louis to Phoenix, Arizona in 1988, but they were originally in Chicago when the NFL began in 1920 and moved to St. Louis in 1960. They were also known as the Phoenix Cardinals from 1988-1994.
  • The Seattle Seahawks moved from the AFC West, to the NFC West in 2002, but this is not the first time the Seahawks were in the NFC.  When they joined the league in the expansion year of 1976 they spent one year in the NFC Central and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers spent their first year in the AFC West.  The two teams switched conferences and divisions the next year.
  • The Chicago Bears began as the Decatur Staleys when the NFL began in 1920, they moved to Chicago and were known as the Chicago Staleys in 1921, and changed to the Chicago Bears in 1922.
  • The Detroit Lions began in 1930 as the Portsmouth Spartans and moved to Detroit and became the Lions in 1934.
  • The Washington Redskins began in 1932 as the Boston Braves, in 1934 they changed to the Boston Redskins and then moved to Washington in 1937.
  • The New England Patriots began in 1960 as the Boston Patriots and changed the name to New England in 1970 when the AFL and NFL merged.
  • The San Diego Chargers began in 1960 as the Los Angeles Chargers, and moved to San Diego in 1961.
  • The Pittsburgh Steelers began in 1933 as the Pittsburgh Pirates. They changed to the Steelers in 1940.
  • The New York Jets began in 1960 and were known as the New York Titans till the end of the 1962 season.
  • The Kansas City Chiefs began in 1960 as the Dallas Texans, and moved to Kansas City in 1963.
  • The Indianapolis Colts began in 1953 as the Baltimore Colts and moved to Indianapolis in the dark of night in March 1984. Baltimore fans woke up the next morning to find they no longer had an NFL franchise.  But the NFL would return in 1996 when the Cleveland Browns moved to Baltimore, but since the city of Cleveland had trademarked the Browns name and team records, the team had to change their name to the Ravens.  The city of Cleveland was awarded a new Browns team in 1999.
  • The Tennessee Titans began in 1960 as the Houston Oilers. The Oilers moved to Tennessee in 1997 and changed their name to the Titans in 1999. The Oilers name was the first retired franchise name by the NFL that same year.

There are some facts to ponder as we look forward to the last week of the regular season.

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