The NFL currently boasts 32 proud franchises that compete for the coveted Lombardi Trophy each season. The League started with fewer teams in its fray over a century ago; a slow progression of expansion, retraction, and merger has led to the modern NFL divisions and conferences.

Embark on a captivating journey through The Complete NFL Expansion History, a series that uncovers the untold stories behind the teams that laid the foundation for the NFL’s modern landscape. In this second edition, we continue the thrilling narrative of NFL growth.

In Part I, we started at the launch of the inaugural season. We then subsequently went through the significant teams of the NFL’s first baker’s dozen or seasons to find the core eight franchises that would carry the National League banner for years to come: the Cardinals, Bears, Packers, Giants, Lions, Washington, Steelers, and Eagles.

Quick math tells us that we still need to find out where 24 other franchises originated from to help build the Shield and its representative franchises of the modern era. Without further adieu let’s crack some pads, and keep this NFL expansion journey going.

The Next of the New NFL Franchises

It wouldn’t be until 1937 that the League would absorb another of its long-lasting franchises. 

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The Cleveland Rams were the solitary survivor of the rival upstart football league known as the second incarnation of the American Football League. The AFL lasted for just the 1936 season and succumbed to the NFL. The franchise would play in Cleveland for almost a decade, winning the title in 1945 before leaving town to set up shop on the West Coast in LA. The 1943 season had the Rams sit out due to manpower issues caused by the War. Cleveland returned to the standings in 1944. Though they have also made stops in St. Louis along the way, the team we know as the Los Angeles Rams is the modern-day derivative of this club.

The NFL operated as a ten-team organization for quite a while. The tenth was the Brooklyn Dodgers football program, which was in the league’s standings from 1930 through World War II.

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The Dodgers morphed into the Brooklyn Tigers in 1944 and emerged as the Yanks in 1945 before dissolving after the 1945 season.

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Rival League and a Merger

As World War II ended, the American passion for professionals grew. This provided an avenue for yet another rival league to sprout up the All-American Football Conference or AAFC. After four seasons dominated by one team, the AAFC succumbed to the NFL. Part of the surrender was the parting gift of the League absorbing three of the AAFC’s eight teams into the NFL as franchises. Thus, the next period of expansion was in 1950, when the NFL surged to 13 teams with these additions.

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Under the guidance of innovative Coach Paul Brown and stars like Otto Graham, Marion Motley, Mac Speedie, and others, the Browns lost only four AAFC tilts and captured all of the rival league’s Titles. The first season in the NFL, the Browns won an NFL Championship to make it five in a row and eventually seven championships in their first ten seasons as a football team. That’s pretty dominant!

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The Niners were also a very good AAFC team, and had it not been for the powerhouse Browns, who knows, they could have won multiple Titles before joining the NFL in 1950. The San Francisco franchise had stars like Joe Perry, Frankie Albert, Johnny Strzykalsk, and Norm Standlee leading the charge.

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The name sounds familiar, but these are not the Baltimore Colts that turned into the Indianapolis Blue Horseshoes we know and love today. This original NFL Colts club went belly up one season after the merger, but they did have a guy on their roster named Y. A. Tittle, who would eventually be an NFL legend. More on the Colts in a moment.

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These new Colts of Baltimore went on to play for the NFL title a few times just a handful of years after being resurrected. This team went on to have Johnny Unitas, Raymond Berry, and company and won Super Bowl V before moving to Indy.

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Fending Off Yet Another Rival

The status quo of the National Football League sticking to twelve teams lasted until 1960, when yet another competitor, what many consider the fourth edition of the AFL, was brought to life. The NFL decided to go head-to-head in the Dallas-Fort Worth market when the American Football League reincarnated the Dallas Texans name. The NFL, in turn, countered with a franchise of its own.

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Dallas hired innovative Giants defensive coordinator Tom Landry, who would lead Big D for three decades. The Cowboys could have been a better team in that first season but had some rising stars in QB Don Meredith, Jim Doran, Eddie LeBaron, and others. The big news was that they won the battle of Dallas as the Texans left town to become the AFL’s Kansas City affiliate.

The NFL chose another potential battleground with the AFL to even out the number of teams for scheduling and conference reasons to get the number of franchises to fourteen. The American League did have a franchise on paper prior to the NFL having one, but with some power play moves, the Twin City AFL franchises have yet to come to fruition. The NFL had better luck with their new entry.

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Former Championship Quarterback Norm Van Brocklin was the Vikings’ first head Coach. A youngster from Georgia named Fran Tarkenton was the team’s signal caller. At the same time, veterans like Hugh McEhlhenny, Jerry Reichow, and Mel Triplett provided a touch of experience to the new team on the field.

It would not be until 1966 that the next new squad would debut in the League.

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The AFL brand of football was garnering steam and popularity with some innovative Television contracts. The NFL countered again by grabbing some strongholds in the South, and Atlanta was a big prize they needed. The Falcons had a watered-down roster but still managed three wins in their opening season of play.

The uneven amount of teams again caused scheduling disturbances in 1966. The NFL would correct the numbers and balance thongs out again by going South once more, canceling yet another AFL threat.

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Another former NFL star would get a Head Coaching position, as Tom Fears was the Saints’ first sideline boss. Veteran QB Billy Kilmer took up under center while veterans Tom Barrington and Jim Taylor lined up behind him. 

The move to sixteen teams allowed the NFL to go to four divisions for the first time in history, allowing for an expanded postseason.

It would be the next expansion period that would be the most significant in league history. One that would change the course of the NFL, significantly altering the sports landscape across the globe. Look back for Part III of this series on the history of NFL expansion as we look at this whirlwind of growth for the NFL.

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