Vegas Vipers: XFL Names New Las Vegas Franchise
Anyone who knows Las Vegas knows we are thirsty for football here. We’ve got the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders now as well as the Vegas Knight Hawks indoor football team kicking off in late March. Not to mention a professional flag football team coming. But you’ll never forget your first.
Yes, the XFL is returning to the world for a third time in 2023 and Las Vegas finds itself as one of the eight cities sporting a franchise. That franchise now has a name: Vegas Vipers. We gotta be honest, we kind of love it. Surprised it wasn’t taken!
The history of the XFL in Vegas
You may remember “way back” in 2000 the first iteration of the XFL, headed by then WWF CEO Vince McMahon, played out of Sam Boyd Stadium as the Las Vegas Outlaws. The league’s most notable player, “He Hate Me”, played for the team. His name was Rod Smart and he went on to play in the NFL for, among other teams, the Raiders!
The original XFL lived and died in 2000 and wasn’t a great product. It was revived in 2020 and the product was pretty decent! Some decent players putting on the pads, some boring NFL rules were thrown out and replaced with a new way of playing the game. It was honestly decent! Then the pandemic hit, cutting season short and putting the league into bankruptcy.
Do you smell what The Rock is buying?
Just when you thought the league was on the outs once and for all, enter Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, his ex-wife and business partner Dany Garcia and a private equity firm. They plunked down $15,000,000 to take over the league and hope that the third time is a charm.
Now the league’s teams have names, and while the Vegas Vipers don’t have an officially announced venue yet, ticket prices are expected to be reasonable. The team will be coached by Raiders legend Rod Woodson and might be our best shot at a football title in the valley! So… get your fangs out! Let’s go Vipers!
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The Story Behind Every NFL Team Name
Arizona Cardinals
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– Year founded: 1920
– Overall record: 577-777-41
– Previous team names: Chicago Cardinals, St. Louis Cardinals, Phoenix CardinalsDespite locations in three cities, the Cardinals have kept the same name for almost 100 years. The team initially bought used football jerseys from the University of Chicago, garments that faded over time. Chris O’Brien, the team’s founder, named the new shade “Cardinal red.” The Cardinals have never won a Super Bowl, coming closest in Super Bowl XLIII.
Atlanta Falcons
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– Year founded: 1966
– Overall record: 376-483-6In the 1960s, the American Football League and NFL were interested in adding a team in Atlanta. Before the NFL introduced the franchise in 1966, a naming contest was held, and Julia Elliott, a local teacher, chose the name “Falcons” because “the falcon is proud and dignified, with great courage and fight. It never drops its prey. It is deadly, and has a great sporting tradition.” The line “never drops its prey” is quite ironic—in Super Bowl LI, the Falcons led the Patriots 28-3, only to give up 31 unanswered points and lose the game.
Baltimore Ravens
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– Year founded: 1996
– Overall record: 233-183-1Shortly after Art Modell moved his football team in Cleveland to Baltimore, panel discussions, focus groups, and fan polls were held to come up with a new name. Ravens, which draws upon a famous Edgar Allan Poe poem, was a consistent choice. Poe lived and died in Baltimore, where the Ravens have celebrated two Super Bowl wins.
Buffalo Bills
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– Year founded: 1960
– Overall record: 449-492-8A Buffalo football club in the All-America Football Conference was named the Bisons, but in 1947, a renaming contest was held. The name Bills was chosen after Buffalo Bill Cody, and 13 years later, when Buffalo placed a team in the AFL, Buffalo Bills was kept intact. The Bills have reached four Super Bowls but lost them all.
Carolina Panthers
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– Year founded: 1995
– Overall record: 205-227-1The Richardson family, who originally owned the Panthers, came up with the team’s name before their 1995 debut. They chose black, blue, and silver as the colors to create synergy with the name. The Panthers have reached two Super Bowls but are still awaiting their first championship.
Chicago Bears
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– Year founded: 1920
– Overall record: 783-610-42
– Previous team names: Decatur Staleys, Chicago StaleysThe Bears have been with the NFL since its start (even though they were originally called the Staleys). According to the franchise, the team’s name switched to the Bears on Jan. 28, 1922. A.E. Staley, the franchise’s former owner, transferred the team to George Halas in 1921, with a promise to keep the name as Staleys for one year. Since then, the Bears have won nine league championships (only one was a Super Bowl, though) and have put the most players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Cincinnati Bengals
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– Year founded: 1968
– Overall record: 373-459-5At first, the new AFL team in Cincinnati considered calling themselves the “Buckeyes,” but the name’s strong ties to Ohio State University canceled that idea. Paul Brown, an investor in the team, thought Bengals was a fitting nod to former football teams from the Cincinnati area. The Bengals reached two Super Bowls in the 1980s but fell both times to the San Francisco 49ers.
Dallas Cowboys
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– Year founded: 1960
– Overall record: 538-403-6They like to call themselves “America’s Team,” but the Cowboys is their official name. This came to be after the Cowboys were originally going to be called the Rangers. But the existence of a baseball team with the same name led to change to avoid confusion. Since then, Dallas has been one of the NFL’s most successful franchises, winning five Super Bowls.
Denver Broncos
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– Year founded: 1960
– Overall record: 495-444-10After a new AFL franchise was awarded to Denver, the city held a contest to name the new club. The name Broncos was selected as the winner, which was also the name of an area baseball team decades earlier. Since then, the Broncos have become a part of Denver culture (there is even a mythical bronco-like statue at the city’s airport) and have won three Super Bowls.
Detroit Lions
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– Year founded: 1930
– Overall record: 570-694-34
– Previous team names: Portsmouth SpartansAccording to the book “The Man Who Built the National Football League: Joe F. Carr,” Detroit’s NFL team came to be known as the Lions as a counterpart to the existing baseball team in the city, the Tigers. A team spokesman later said, “The lion is monarch of the jungle and we hope to be the monarch of the league.” The Lions won four NFL championships pre-AFL/NFL merger but have never reached a Super Bowl.
Green Bay Packers
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– Year founded: 1921
– Overall record: 782-581-38Green Bay’s football team was sponsored by local packing companies; hence, the name Packers. The Packers have won four Super Bowls, including the first two, and are among the most successful and popular teams in the league. Locals also often refer to themselves as “cheese heads” for wearing foam cheese hats to home games.
Houston Texans
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– Year founded: 2002
– Overall record: 139-182-0Houston’s expansion football franchise conducted months of research into devising a team name. Five candidates were considered—Apollos, Bobcats, Stallions, Texans, and Wildcatters. Texans was selected as the winner, with a live ceremony on ESPN2. The team has made five playoff appearances, all within the past decade.
Indianapolis Colts
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– Year founded: 1953
– Overall record: 543-481-7
– Previous team names: Baltimore ColtsThe Colts, like many sports teams, were named thanks to a fan contest. The team eventually moved from Baltimore to Indianapolis, but when football returned to Baltimore in 1996, the team that would eventually become the Ravens tried to buy the rights to the Colts nickname for $5 million. The Indianapolis Colts did not change names and won the franchise’s first Super Bowl in Indianapolis (and second overall) in 2007.
Jacksonville Jaguars
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– Year founded: 1995
– Overall record: 180-253-0In 1993, Ray Potts, a Jacksonville resident, won a naming contest for the city’s new NFL team with his entry of Jaguars. Potts won season tickets for his choice and a trip to the Super Bowl. The Jaguars have yet to reach a Super Bowl of their own.
Kansas City Chiefs
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– Year founded: 1960
– Overall record: 507-431-12
– Previous team names: Dallas TexansKansas City’s new football team in 1960 was definitely in need of a name change (the franchise’s previous name, the Texans, was not going to fly in Missouri). Former Kansas City Mayor H. Roe Bartle was nicknamed “Chief” and, as a nod to his efforts to bring the formerly Dallas Texans to his city, team ownership named the team Chiefs. The Chiefs won their lone Super Bowl in 1970.
Los Angeles Chargers
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– Year founded: 1960
– Overall record: 468-470-11
– Previous team names: San Diego ChargersIn 2017, the Chargers left San Diego for Los Angeles, with plans to play in a new stadium in the area in 2020. Frank Leahy, the Chargers’ first general manager, liked the “Charge!” bugle chant at USC games and suggested the name Chargers. When they still resided in San Diego, the Chargers reached one Super Bowl and lost in 1995.
Los Angeles Rams
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– Year founded: 1937
– Overall record: 599-580-21
– Previous team names: Cleveland Rams, Los Angeles Rams, St. Louis RamsThe Rams’ name, a moniker that was first coined in tribute to the strong Fordham Rams college football teams from the 1930s, has stayed the same through several moves. The Rams were also the first team to wear a logo on their helmet, the now-infamous Ram horns. Those helmets were victorious in Super Bowl XXXIV but lost the Super Bowl in 2019 to the New England Patriots.
Miami Dolphins
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– Year founded: 1966
– Overall record: 476-385-4According to the book “The Power of a Name: The Origin of Professional Sports Team Nicknames and Their Most Valuable Players,” the name Dolphins was selected in a fan contest. The winner reportedly received two lifetime passes to home games. In addition, owner Joe Robbie liked the name because “the Dolphin is one of the fastest and smartest creatures in the sea.” The 1972 Dolphins, if not the fastest and smartest, were certainly the best team in football, posting the NFL’s only perfect season that included a Super Bowl victory.
Minnesota Vikings
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– Year founded: 1961
– Overall record: 503-421-11The name Vikings was an obvious choice for the NFL’s new team in Minnesota, given the large numbers of residents with Scandinavian heritage in the state. Among the other potential monikers included Miners, Chippewas, and Voyageurs. The Vikings’ famous horn and “Skol” chant at home games have become franchise staples, prominent in the club’s most notable moments like after Stefon Diggs scored the game-winning touchdown in a 2018 divisional playoff game.
New England Patriots
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– Year founded: 1960
– Overall record: 529-411-9
– Previous team names: Boston PatriotsMany suggestions for the Boston area’s AFL team were historically themed. Minutemen and Colonials were options, but the name Patriots was most popular in a fan-entry contest. More than just a spirited band of rebels, the Patriots have developed into one of the NFL’s preeminent franchises, winning all six of their Super Bowls since 2001.
New Orleans Saints
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– Year founded: 1967
– Overall record: 396-450-5New Orleans was awarded an NFL franchise on Nov. 1, 1966—All Saints’ Day. Hence, the team became known as the Saints. For much of their history, the Saints were bumbling toward the bottom of the NFL—referred to by some fans as the “Aint’s”—but with Drew Brees as the quarterback, they won their first Super Bowl in 2010.
New York Giants
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– Year founded: 1925
– Overall record: 706-631-33For much of the Giants’ early existence, there were two professional teams in New York with that name: baseball and football. In 1937, the NFL’s Giants officially changed their name to the New York Football Giants to distinguish themselves (occasionally, announcers will use the full name to add a little pomp). The Giants have also called themselves Super Bowl champions on four occasions.
New York Jets
Joe Robbins // Getty Images
– Year founded: 1960
– Overall record: 414-527-8
– Previous team names: New York TitansThe Jets entered the AFL as the Titans—albeit no relation to today’s Tennessee Titans—but changed their name in 1963 (new owner Sonny Werblin liked the color green and the name Jets). The Jets formerly played in New York, but their home stadium is now in New Jersey (like the Giants, they retain New York in their name). The franchise’s pinnacle occurred in 1969 when Joe Namath and the underdog Jets upset the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III.
Las Vegas Raiders
Wesley Hitt // Getty Images
– Year founded: 1960
– Overall record: 491-447-11
– Previous team names: Los Angeles Raiders, Oakland RaidersIn 2020, the Raiders officially made Las Vegas their home after 60 years of bouncing between Oakland and Los Angeles. Originally, the team was going to be called the Oakland Señors, but the name and the planned orange-and-black uniforms were not well received. Instead, the Raiders logo and silver-and-black outfits have become iconic looks in professional sports.
Pittsburgh Steelers
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– Year founded: 1933
– Overall record: 652-563-22
– Previous team names: Pittsburgh PiratesPittsburgh’s NFL team first shared the same name as the city’s baseball team but changed to the Steelers in 1940. Steelers was a nod to the city’s steel-making heritage. During World War II, when many players went to serve in the military, the Steelers combined with the Eagles to become the “Steagles.” The alliance was short-lived, and the Steelers won six Super Bowls on their own.
San Francisco 49ers
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– Year founded: 1950
– Overall record: 561-492-14The 49ers were named after the pioneers who rushed to California in 1849 in search of gold. In terms of Super Bowl wins, the 49ers have struck gold five times. Currently, the team actually plays in Santa Clara, south of San Francisco.
Seattle Seahawks
Kevin C. Cox // Getty Images
– Year founded: 1976
– Overall record: 374-350-1A reported 20,365 entries were submitted to name Seattle’s NFL team, with Seahawks selected as the winner. The Seahawks fans call themselves the “12th man” for their vocal support at home games and cheered emphatically when Seattle won Super Bowl XLVIII.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Jordon Kelly / Icon Sportswire // Getty images
– Year founded: 1976
– Overall record: 291-433-1Connected to the legend of José Gaspar and his pirate exploits near Florida, Tampa Bay took on the Buccaneers nickname. Although they struggled mightily in their infancy (even going 0-14 in their first year), the Bucs had a memorable swashbuckling logo and “creamsicle” uniforms. They ditched the look toward the end of the 20th century and then won a Super Bowl in 2003.
Tennessee Titans
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– Year founded: 1960
– Overall record: 463-480-6
– Previous team names: Houston Oilers, Tennessee OilersThe Houston Oilers moved to Tennessee in 1997 and originally kept their nickname. But two years removed from Texas, the franchise’s ownership decided the team needed a new identity in its new locale. The Titans, a name that once belonged to the New York Jets franchise, was selected. That first season as the Tennessee Titans, the team reached the Super Bowl.
Washington Commanders
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– Year founded: 1932
– Overall record: 617-622-28
– Previous team names: Boston Braves, Boston Redskins, Washington Redskins, Washington Football TeamAfter 87 years as the Redskins, the franchise parted ways with the name and its racist connotations in 2019 and officially rebranded as the Washington Commanders in February 2022. In 2021, the team updated its stadium protocol and policies to prohibit the fans from wearing Native American-inspired ceremonial headdresses or face paint. Even though it held its previous name for the better part of a century, this isn’t the team’s first major rebranding. Originally called the Boston Braves, owner George P. Marshall changed the moniker in 1933 to the Boston Redskins and four years later moved the team to Washington D.C.
