A team name is the first uniform decision. Before anyone picks a color or draws a helmet logo, the name tells you what the team is supposed to look like. The Cardinals are literally named after the color of their jerseys. The Rams put horns on their helmets. The Steelers wear a logo that was built for the steel industry.
So we went back to the start for all 32 NFL teams. Some names came from fan contests with thousands of entries. Some came from one owner in one room. One came from a used box of college jerseys, one from a stove, and one from a 19th-century poem. Where the story is disputed, we say so.
This is the first part of our team-name history series. MLB, NBA, NHL and college football are next.
Quick Facts: NFL Team Names
- Oldest name: the Cardinals, from 1901.
- Newest name: the Commanders, from 2022.
- Named by a fan contest or public vote: Bills, Dolphins, Patriots, Ravens, Steelers, Browns, Colts, Jaguars, Broncos, Raiders, Chargers, Falcons, Saints, Buccaneers and Seahawks. In a few of those, the owner overruled the fans or picked a lower finisher.
- Fans voted, owner went another way: the Chiefs. The most popular entry in the contest was "Mules."
- Picked by the owner or front office: Bengals, Texans, Titans, Jets, Cowboys, Giants, Eagles, Bears, Lions, Vikings, Panthers and Commanders.
- Moved cities and kept the name: Cardinals (Chicago, St. Louis, Arizona), Rams (Cleveland, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Los Angeles), Raiders (Oakland, Los Angeles, Oakland, Las Vegas), Chargers (Los Angeles, San Diego, Los Angeles) and Colts (Baltimore, Indianapolis).
- Borrowed from a baseball team: the Giants took the name outright. The Bears and Lions were picked to pair with Chicago's Cubs and Detroit's Tigers.
- Named after a person: the Browns (coach Paul Brown) and, in spirit, the Chiefs (Kansas City mayor H. Roe Bartle).
AFC East
Buffalo Bills
The name goes back to 1947, when Buffalo's All-America Football Conference team ran a name-the-team contest to replace "Bisons." The winner, James F. Dyson, pictured the club as "a band of Buffalo Bills," a nod to the frontiersman Buffalo Bill Cody. Owner James Breuil also ran Frontier Oil, so a Wild West theme fit. When Ralph Wilson started his AFL team in 1959, he brought the old name back. Buffalo Bills uniform schedule 2026
Bills logos, 1962 to today.
Miami Dolphins
Owner Joe Robbie announced the name on Oct. 8, 1965, after a public contest that drew 19,843 entries and more than 1,000 different names. 622 people suggested "Dolphins." Robbie called the dolphin "one of the fastest and smartest creatures of the sea." The tiebreaker winner, Mrs. Robert Swanson of West Miami, got lifetime passes for correctly predicting a Notre Dame vs. Miami score. Miami Dolphins uniform schedule 2026
Dolphins marks, 1980 to today.
New England Patriots
Owner Billy Sullivan ran a fan contest in 1960, and "Patriots" was the pick for Boston's new AFL team. They were the Boston Patriots until 1971. The name went straight onto the helmet: Boston Globe cartoonist Phil Bissell drew a Minuteman hiking a football in 1960, and Sullivan made "Pat Patriot" the official logo in 1961. New England Patriots uniform schedule 2026
Patriots logos, 1960 to today.
New York Jets
This team started as the New York Titans in 1960. A group led by Sonny Werblin bought the club in 1963 and renamed it the Jets on April 15, 1963. Their new home, Shea Stadium, sat between LaGuardia and Idlewild (now JFK) airports, right at the start of the jet age. The new owners also switched from navy and gold to green and white. A club spokesman said green stood for "hope, freshness and high spirits." New York Jets uniform schedule 2026
AFC North
Jets logos, 1972 to today.
Baltimore Ravens
After the Browns moved to Baltimore, the team's new name went to a vote. Focus groups cut 17 finalists down to a few, and a Baltimore Sun phone-in poll did the rest. Per the team, 22,463 of 33,748 callers picked "Ravens," a tribute to Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven." Poe lived in Baltimore and is buried there. The name was announced March 29, 1996. Baltimore Ravens uniform schedule 2026
Ravens logos, 1999 to today.
Edgar Allan Poe in 1849. Public domain.
Cincinnati Bengals
No contest here. Paul Brown picked the name himself when his expansion team was approved in 1967. He revived the Cincinnati Bengals who played in the 1930s and early 1940s, "to give it a link with past professional football in Cincinnati." That original team's founder, Hal Pennington, said he took the name from the Bengal tiger trademark on his mother's stove. Cincinnati Bengals uniform schedule 2026
Bengals marks, 1968 to today.
A 1920 ad for a "Bengal" kitchen range, the kind of stove behind the name. The Bridgeport Times, via the Library of Congress. Public domain.
Cleveland Browns
Owner Mickey McBride held a fan contest in 1945. "Panthers" was popular, but coach Paul Brown shot it down because an earlier Cleveland Panthers team had failed. Most of the entries pointed back to Brown himself, and McBride went with "Browns" over his coach's objection. For years Brown said the team was named after boxer Joe Louis, the "Brown Bomber." He later admitted he made that up, partly because he did not want a team named after himself. Cleveland Browns uniform schedule 2026
Browns logos, 1965 to today.
Joe Louis, the "Brown Bomber," in 1941. Photo: Carl Van Vechten, Library of Congress. Public domain.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh played as the Pirates from 1933 to 1939. After a 1-9-1 season, Art Rooney and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ran a 1940 fan contest, and "Steelers" won as a salute to the city's steel industry. Several people sent in the winning name, so no single fan gets the credit. The helmet logo came later: in 1962 Republic Steel offered the team the Steelmark, a symbol made for the American Iron and Steel Institute. Its three shapes originally stood for yellow coal, orange iron ore and blue steel scrap. Pittsburgh Steelers uniform schedule 2026
AFC South
Steelers logo and the Steelmark that inspired it.
Photo: Erik Drost / CC BY 2.0
Houston Texans
Houston's expansion team got its name through months of research and focus groups, not a fan contest. In March 2000 the list was five names: Apollos, Bobcats, Stallions, Texans and Wildcatters. Owner Bob McNair and Commissioner Paul Tagliabue announced "Texans" at a downtown rally on Sept. 6, 2000. The colors are Battle Red, Deep Steel Blue and Liberty White. The team said its first uniform was built around the state's culture: the bull and the horns. Houston Texans uniform schedule 2026
Texans marks, 2002 to today.
Indianapolis Colts
The Colts name started in Baltimore in 1947, when a fan contest named the city's new AAFC team after Baltimore's long history of horse breeding and racing. That team folded, but a new Baltimore NFL franchise kept the name in 1953 and took the blue and white of the folded Dallas Texans. The name moved to Indianapolis overnight on March 29, 1984. Indianapolis Colts uniform schedule 2026
Colts marks, 1953 to today.
Photo: Sgt. Jonah Alvarez / Public domain
Jacksonville Jaguars
Jacksonville picked its name in 1991, almost two years before it even had a team. A local fan vote chose "Jaguars" over Sharks, Stingrays and Panthers. The team's own site says the Jacksonville Zoo's jaguar, at the time the oldest living jaguar in North America, "had a degree of influence." "Sharks" was a strong runner-up, partly because Jacksonville already had a Sharks team in the 1974 World Football League. Jacksonville Jaguars uniform schedule 2026
Jaguars marks, 1995 to today.
Tennessee Titans
The Houston Oilers moved to Tennessee in 1997 and played two seasons as the Tennessee Oilers. Owner Bud Adams set up a committee, which narrowed the field to 39 options, and Adams announced "Titans" on Nov. 14, 1998. His reasoning: Titans come from Greek mythology, and Nashville is known as the "Athens of the South." The new name took effect in 1999. Tennessee Titans uniform schedule 2026
AFC West
From the Houston Oilers to the Titans.
Photo: Walker Kinsler / CC BY-SA 4.0
Denver Broncos
Owner Bob Howsam held a statewide contest in 1960, and eight people entered "Broncos." Ward M. Vining of Lakewood won with a 25-word essay. His daughter says he wrote that broncos were tough and typified the West. His prize was season tickets, reportedly one seat behind a post. The Broncos are the rare NFL team that has never changed its name. Their first colors, mustard and brown, did not last nearly as long. Denver Broncos uniform schedule 2026
Broncos marks, 1968 to today.
Kansas City Chiefs
When Lamar Hunt moved his Dallas Texans to Kansas City in 1963, the Kansas City Star ran a rename contest with more than 4,000 entries. The most popular pick was "Mules." Hunt went with "Chiefs" instead, a tribute to Mayor H. Roe Bartle, known as "the Chief," who had recruited the team. Hunt also designed the arrowhead logo himself, with the interlocking KC inside, inspired by the 49ers' helmet. Kansas City Chiefs uniform schedule 2026
From the Dallas Texans to the Chiefs.
Photo: All-Pro Reels / CC BY-SA 2.0
Las Vegas Raiders
This one almost went very differently. In 1960 an Oakland Tribune name-the-team contest picked the "Oakland Señors." The name was mocked, and critics questioned the contest because managing partner Chet Soda was known to call people "señor." Days later, the team switched to "Raiders," which had also been among the top finishers. The Raiders started in black, gold and white. Al Davis switched to silver and black in 1963, and the name went with the team to Los Angeles in 1982, back to Oakland in 1995 and to Las Vegas in 2020. Las Vegas Raiders uniform schedule 2026
Raiders marks, 1960 to today.
Photo: All-Pro Reels / CC BY-SA 4.0
Los Angeles Chargers
Owner Barron Hilton ran a name-the-team contest for his new Los Angeles AFL team in 1960. Hilton said he liked "Chargers" because fans yelled "charge" and sounded a bugle at Dodgers and USC games. There is a long-running theory that the name also plugged Hilton's new Carte Blanche charge card, but that story is not as well sourced. The name fit the look right away: lightning bolts on the helmets and pants from the first uniform. Los Angeles Chargers uniform schedule 2026
NFC East
Chargers marks, 1960 to today.
Photo: All-Pro Reels / CC BY-SA 2.0
Dallas Cowboys
Owner Clint Murchison Jr.'s first choice in 1960 was "Rangers." General manager Tex Schramm objected, because Dallas already had a minor-league baseball team called the Rangers. Schramm called Murchison with three finalists, and Murchison picked "Cowboys." The team went with blue partly because Lamar Hunt's Dallas Texans had already claimed red. Dallas Cowboys uniform schedule 2026
Cowboys logos, 1960 to today.
Photo: Joe Glorioso / All-Pro Reels / CC BY-SA 4.0
New York Giants
Tim Mara bought the franchise in 1925 and borrowed the name from baseball's New York Giants. The two teams shared the Polo Grounds. The club's legal name is still the New York Football Giants, a leftover from the days when it had to tell itself apart from the baseball team. New York Giants uniform schedule 2026
Giants logos, 1956 to today.
Photo: Joe Glorioso / All-Pro Reels / CC BY-SA 2.0
Philadelphia Eagles
Bert Bell and Lud Wray took over the defunct Frankford Yellow Jackets franchise in 1933 and named the team after the Blue Eagle, the symbol of President Roosevelt's National Recovery Administration. According to Bell's son Upton, Bell saw an NRA poster after leaving City Hall, and his wife Frances said, "That's it." The first Eagles colors were blue and yellow, Philadelphia's city flag colors. Green arrived in 1935. Philadelphia Eagles uniform schedule 2026
Eagles logos and wordmarks, 1996 to today.
A 1934 NRA Blue Eagle poster. National Archives. Public domain.
Photo: Joe Glorioso / All-Pro Reels / CC BY-SA 2.0
Washington Commanders
The franchise started in 1932 as the Boston Braves, borrowing the name of the baseball team. In 1933 owner George Preston Marshall moved to Fenway Park and changed the name to "Redskins." The team moved to Washington in 1937, dropped that name in 2020 and played two seasons as the Washington Football Team. "Commanders" was announced on Feb. 2, 2022, after a search of about 20 months. The burgundy and gold stayed. Washington Commanders uniform schedule 2026
NFC North
Washington marks since the 2020 rebrand, Football Team to Commanders.
Photo: Joe Glorioso / All-Pro Reels / CC BY-SA 4.0
Chicago Bears
George Halas's team started as the Decatur Staleys in 1920 and played 1921 as the Chicago Staleys. In 1922 Halas renamed it. The team played at the Cubs' ballpark, and his logic was simple: football players are bigger than baseball players, so the football team should be the Bears. Chicago Bears uniform schedule 2026
Bears logos, 1974 to today.
The 1920 Decatur Staleys, two years before they became the Bears. Public domain.
Detroit Lions
Radio executive George A. Richards bought the Portsmouth (Ohio) Spartans and moved them to Detroit in 1934. His quote: "The Lion is the king of the jungle, and the Detroit Lions will be the kings of the NFL." The name also paired with the city's baseball Tigers. The famous Honolulu blue has its own disputed origin. One story says Richards loved the color of the Hawaiian ocean, and a former player said he and his wife picked the shade. Detroit Lions uniform schedule 2026
From the Portsmouth Spartans to today's Lions, 1929 to now.
Green Bay Packers
The Packers were organized in 1919, and Curly Lambeau's employer, the Indian Packing Company, paid for uniforms and let the team use its field. The name came from that sponsor. Team historian Cliff Christl says the Green Bay Press-Gazette coined it, not Lambeau. The paper called the team both "Packers" and "Indians" at first, then settled on "Packers" within days. Green Bay Packers uniform schedule 2026
Packers G logo, 1961 to today.
Minnesota Vikings
General manager Bert Rose recommended "Vikings" to the board, and the name became official on Sept. 27, 1960, a year before the team's first game. The idea was a nod to the upper Midwest's Nordic heritage and "an aggressive person with the will to win." Rose also asked for purple and gold, the colors of his alma mater, the University of Washington. A competing story credits a co-owner's Wisconsin high school, also the Vikings, but that claim is disputed. Minnesota Vikings uniform schedule 2026
NFC South
Vikings marks, 1961 to today.
Atlanta Falcons
A 1965 name-the-team contest produced the Falcons. Several people entered the name, but schoolteacher Julia Elliott of Griffin, Georgia, won with her explanation: "The Falcon is proud and dignified, with great courage and fight." Lancers and Thrashers tied for second. Atlanta Falcons uniform schedule 2026
Falcons marks, 1990s to today.
Carolina Panthers
No contest and no focus groups. The Richardson family picked "Panthers" before the franchise was awarded in October 1993, and the logo and helmet were already finished. Mark Richardson, Jerry's son, said the name stood for what a team should be: "powerful, sleek and strong." Jerry Richardson picked the black, silver and blue himself, with the blue set between the shades of North Carolina and Duke. Carolina Panthers uniform schedule 2026
Panthers marks, 1995 to today.
Photo: Joe Glorioso / All-Pro Reels / CC BY-SA 2.0
New Orleans Saints
New Orleans got its franchise on Nov. 1, 1966, All Saints Day, and founder Dave Dixon timed the announcement on purpose. He even cleared the name with Archbishop Philip Hannan, who joked the team would need all the help it could get. A newspaper contest that month also had "Saints" as the top pick, so both stories are true. The name also nods to "When the Saints Go Marching In." The black and gold stand for "black gold," a tie to owner John Mecom Jr.'s oil business. New Orleans Saints uniform schedule 2026
Saints fleur-de-lis, 1967 to today.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Radio station WFLA ran a contest in 1975 that drew more than 400 suggested names. A panel of local sportswriters picked "Buccaneers," after the pirates who sailed Florida's coast and Tampa's own Gasparilla pirate festival. Tampa Tribune artist Lamar Sparkman then drew the winking pirate known as "Bucco Bruce," aiming for a swashbuckler in the style of Errol Flynn. Tampa Bay Buccaneers uniform schedule 2026
NFC West
Buccaneers marks, 1997 to today.
Arizona Cardinals
The oldest name in the league. The club began on Chicago's South Side in 1898, and in 1901 Chris O'Brien bought used, faded maroon jerseys from the University of Chicago. His famous line: "That's not maroon, it's Cardinal red!" The team became the Racine Cardinals, after the Racine Avenue area where it played. A team literally named after its uniform. Arizona Cardinals uniform schedule 2026
Cardinals logos from Chicago to St. Louis to Arizona, 1920s to today.
The Chicago Cardinals in 1925. Chicago Tribune. Public domain.
Los Angeles Rams
The Rams started in Cleveland in 1936 and were named after Fordham University, a college power at the time and co-founder Damon "Buzz" Wetzel's favorite team. Owner Homer Marshman later remembered it differently, saying a sportswriter suggested the name. In 1948 halfback Fred Gehrke painted ram horns on the team's helmets, the first logo on any NFL helmet. Los Angeles Rams uniform schedule 2026
Rams logos from Cleveland to Los Angeles, 1937 to today.
San Francisco 49ers
Tony Morabito's team joined the new All-America Football Conference in 1946. Per the team, partner Allen Sorrell suggested the name, after the prospectors who rushed to California for gold in 1849. The first logo matched: a gold miner in boots and a lumberjack shirt, firing two pistols. San Francisco 49ers uniform schedule 2026
49ers marks, 1962 to today.
Photo: Joe Glorioso / All-Pro Reels / CC BY-SA 2.0
Seattle Seahawks
Seattle's 1975 contest drew 20,365 entries and 1,741 different names. 153 people sent in "Seahawks," and the name was picked on June 17, 1975. "Seahawk" is another name for the osprey, but the logo tells a different story: it was based on a Kwakwaka'wakw mask from the Pacific Northwest. Seattle Seahawks uniform schedule 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Which NFL team names came from a fan contest?
The Bills, Dolphins, Patriots, Ravens, Steelers, Browns, Colts, Jaguars, Broncos, Raiders, Chargers, Falcons, Saints, Buccaneers and Seahawks all came out of a fan contest or a public vote. The Chiefs also held a contest, but Lamar Hunt passed on the top choice, "Mules."
What is the oldest team name in the NFL?
The Cardinals. The name dates to 1901, when Chris O'Brien bought faded maroon jerseys from the University of Chicago and called the color "Cardinal red."
How did the Bengals get their name?
Paul Brown picked it in 1967 to bring back the name of an earlier Cincinnati Bengals team from the 1930s and 1940s. That team's founder said he got the name from the Bengal tiger trademark on his mother's stove.
Why are the Ravens called the Ravens?
Fans picked it in a 1996 Baltimore Sun phone poll. It honors Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven." Poe lived in Baltimore and is buried there.
Are the Browns named after Paul Brown?
Yes. Fans in a 1945 contest pushed for it, and the owner chose it over Brown's objection. Brown spent years claiming the team was named after boxer Joe Louis, the "Brown Bomber," then admitted he made that up.
Why are the Packers called the Packers?
The Indian Packing Company sponsored the team in 1919 and paid for its first uniforms. The local newspaper started calling the team the Packers, and it stuck.
Why did the Jets change their name from the Titans?
New owners renamed the team in 1963. Shea Stadium sat between LaGuardia and what is now JFK airport, and the jet age was just getting started.
How did the Chiefs get their name?
It honors Kansas City mayor H. Roe Bartle, nicknamed "the Chief," who helped bring Lamar Hunt's Dallas Texans to town in 1963.
Which NFL teams kept their name after moving cities?
The Cardinals, Rams, Raiders, Chargers and Colts all kept their names after moving. The Oilers became the Titans, and the Browns' move to Baltimore created the Ravens. Cleveland kept the Browns name.
What is the newest NFL team name?
The Washington Commanders, announced Feb. 2, 2022.
The Bottom Line
About half of the 32 NFL names came out of fan contests, the oldest came from a jersey color, and the newest is barely four years old. And a lot of the league's best uniform details, from the Rams' horns to the Patriots' Minuteman to the Steelers' Steelmark, started with the name.
More NFL Coverage
- NFL uniform schedule 2026: what every team is wearing this week
- How the NFL picks its prime-time games in 2026
Team-name histories via the clubs' official sites, the Pro Football Hall of Fame, NFL.com, ESPN and local newspapers and historical societies. Full source list kept with this story.
Seahawks marks, 1976 to today.
