NFL Expansion History: Part I

(last updated on December 27, 2025)

The NFL, a name synonymous with athletic excellence, billion-dollar contracts, and electrifying Sundays, boasts a rich and fascinating history. But where did this powerhouse league begin? Today, we embark on a captivating journey through The Complete NFL Expansion History, a series that unveils the stories behind the teams that laid the foundation for the NFL’s modern landscape.

In this first installment, we travel back in time to 1920, a period where professional football was still taking its first wobbly steps. We’ll meet the 10 courageous teams who dared to form the American Professional Football Association (APFA), the league that would eventually morph into the NFL we know and love.

From the powerhouse squads like the Canton Bulldogs to the underdogs with larger-than-life personalities, each team brought a unique story and a burning passion for the game. We’ll delve into their first seasons, explore the challenges they faced, and celebrate their victories.

Prepare to be surprised! You’ll discover how these early teams redefined the game with innovative strategies and iconic players. We’ll also analyze the crucial moments and decisions that shaped the APFA’s evolution, ultimately leading to the birth of the National Football League.

So, buckle up that leather helmet and grab your virtual history book as we get ready to step back in time! This is the story of the NFL’s humble beginnings with early small town teams and players filled with grit, determination, and the unwavering spirit that continues to define the game today.

Pro Football Organizes

Players getting paid to play American football had occurred since the early 1890s, and attempts to organize the pro game were unfruitful until after World War I. This all changed when a group of progressive team owners gathered in a humble car dealership showroom in Canton, Ohio, on September 17, 1920.

This group of men would organize a conference of teams that would keep track of records and standings compared to each other. They would organize under the American Professional Football Association (APFA) and, in two years, would be rebranded as the National Football League. Here are the original teams that organized to play under the APFA banner in 1920.

Owned by Ralph Hay, who also owned the Hupmobile Showroom that hosted the September 20th meeting, the Canton Bulldogs were a powerhouse in the mythical Ohio League that led up to this new organization of football franchises. Their star player and captain was the legendary Jim Thorpe, who also served as the league’s first president. Pete Henry, Joe Guyon, and Tex Grigg also manned positions for the Dogs.

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Led by legendary players like Al Nesser, Fritz Pollard, Rip King, and Charlie Copley, the Akron team went undefeated and was crowned the inaugural season champions.

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These 11 were a company team from the A.E. Staley Company, a manufacturer of starch and other laundry products. Their captain was an industrious young athlete named George Halas. The Staleys also featured standouts Dutch Sternaman and Jimmy Conzelman. They would compete for the title as runners-up in 1920 and would eventually morph into the Chicago Bears.

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Another contender in 1920, right until the end, was this team from Western New York. Their formidable lineup included stars like Swede Youngstrom, Tommy Hughitt, Bodie Weldon, Heine Miller, and Ockie Anderson. This team would loosely play as the Bisons and Rangers in future seasons.

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A neighborhood club team founded in the late 19th century would survive with talent and solid leadership. The 1920 Cardinals ended the season in fourth place, much to the credit of their superstar, future Hall of Famer Paddy Driscoll. The Cardinals franchise still thrives in the modern NFL as the Arizona Cardinals.

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This squad from the Quad Cities area of Illinois was another franchise that had been around for a while and survived for many seasons. Their big-name players were Rube Ursella, Fred Chicken, and Arnie Wyman.

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The Triangles are credited as the host team of what many claim to be the “first NFL game.” The club was led by owner Carl Storck, who was also a pivotal man in the organization of the league, later serving as its president. Dayton rolled out gridiron standouts such as Lou Partlow, Hobby Kinderdine, and Frank Bacon.

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Mr. Leo Lyons formed this club team on the sandlots of Rochester, New York with high aspirations. He succeeded in being a founding member of the NFL and keeping his team together for a handful of seasons in the NFL. The Jeffs sported roster contributions from legends like Hal Clark and Bob Argus.

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The Heralds were not a highly lauded or heralded team, as their name indicates, but they had some guys who could play, such as Lenny Sachs and Leo Chappell.

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Another team lost during pigskin history is the Tigers team, which some members of the Massillon Tigers constructed. Their top players included George Brickley, Tuffy Conn, and Al Pierotti.

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Not to be confused with the striped cats from Cleveland, it was the Windy City version of the Tigers. Players of note were Oscar Knop and Alfred Eissler.

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Another team near the bottom of the standings was the franchise from near Chicago. Wally Hess and Hank Gillo were the men who made the very few highlight plays for the Hammond club.

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Many of the famed Nesser brothers still played for their original team run by key founder and future NFL president Joe Carr. The Panhandles members were mostly made up of workers in the rail repair yards of Columbus, Ohio and often practiced on lunch breaks.

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Muncie played one league game in 1920 and was soundly beaten by Rock Island 45-0.

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Future Additions to the NFL

Now, countless franchises sprung up and disappeared during the next decade in the National Football League. For the purpose of this series, we are going to stick to the prominent and impactful ones. In 1921, one significant franchise joined the APFA.

The Wisconsin club grew out of a packaging and crating company led by Curly Lambeau, a brilliant football mind and star player for the Packers. Though other new teams joined the league in 1921, only Green Bay survives to this day, so I guess we could consider the Pack the longest-running NFL expansion team.

1924 was the next season that saw some substantial additions. One was the eventual NFL champion Cleveland Bulldogs, a team constructed of a merged Cleveland team with many players from the two-time defending champion Canton Bulldogs, so they were hardly an expansion team. One team totally new to the NFL fray, though, was a contender for the next few years.

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Born from the highly competitive Eastern Pennsylvania Anthracite League, the Yellow Jackets called this Philadelphia suburb home. The Jackets would be around for a bit near the top of the NFL standings, including winning the title in 1926. They would, alas, dissolve due to financial woes during the Depression in the early 1930s, but their charter would be bought and resurrected as a new club as we shall soon delve into.

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Another East Coast team would arise into the league standings. The Rhode Island-based club would make significant contributions to NFL history starting in 1925, including hosting the first night game and winning an NFL championship in 1928. In fact, the Steam Roller is the last defunct NFL team to have won an NFL title. It is sad to say that the Steam Roller charter would fall flat in 1931 due to economic issues.

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The Big Apple finally got a charter member that stuck when Tim Mara was convinced by Joe Carr and others to start a franchise in 1925. The Giants would survive early seasons to win an NFL title in just a few short years and carry that tradition into modern times.

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After winning the Anthracite League in 1924, the Maroons entered the NFL in 1925. They ended with the best record that year, a feat worthy of the NFL title. However, a controversy prohibited their crowning, going down in history as the “lost championship,” which is still debated in court cases to this day. They were even kicked out of the NFL, only to be welcomed back in 1926 before the original AFL could scoop them up.

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After a failed rival league in 1926, Red Grange and C.C. Pyle’s New York Football Yankees were granted a charter in the NFL in 1927. They made it through a handful of seasons before their eventual demise.

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The South Ohio City of Portsmouth merged some former semi-pro clubs to compete in the NFL in 1930. After contending for the league’s top spot for four seasons, the franchise was sold and moved to Detroit to become the Lions.

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Controversial owner George Preston Marshall was granted a franchise in 1932, and he launched the Boston Braves. The Braves’ name would rebrand to the Redskins and later a move from Beantown to the Nation’s Capital would all lead to what we know them as today: the Washington Commanders.

The next session of meaningful NFL expansion would be in 1933 when the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania lifted its Sunday “Blue Laws” that prevented playing games on Sundays. This provided the avenue for the Keystone State to gain two new franchises.

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We alluded to it earlier that Bert Bell and his wife, Vaudeville star Francis Upton, bought the charter of the Frankford Club at a bankruptcy hearing. The new owners and newlyweds changed the name to the Philadelphia Eagles.

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Art Rooney Sr. loved sports, especially boxing, horse racing, and football. When he had the opportunity, he bought a Steel City NFL team and called them the Pirates after their MLB counterparts. A decade later, they rebranded with their own identity as the Steelers.

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To Be Continued …

We are going to hit pause on this story of NFL expansion for now as the basis of the eight core teams of the league was established. They included the Cardinals, Bears, Packers, Giants, Lions, Steelers, Eagles, and Washington. Look for Part II of this series, where we will explore the expansion beyond these base eight.

This entry was posted on Friday, July 19th, 2024 at 4:33 pm and is filed under NFL History. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.