90 Years of Football Almanac

By Juan Llambes

90 Years of Football-Almanac Is a compilation of professional football teams origins from all leagues formed in the US since 1920. Put in chronological order and in an almanac form, it provides a brief description of teams ownership and cities at the time of formation in the year they enter a professional league.

The introduction provides the reader with a chronological summary by decade that describes the progress that professional football has made in since the formation of the first league APFA which became the NFL of today.

The leagues section details the who's who of owners that established the leagues and teams and how and why they came about.

You can follow all the teams changes in names and locations and which teams are still playing today in the PREVIOUS NAMES AND CITIES OF CURRENT TEAMS section.

Follow the origin and demise of all but two of the original 14 teams to be considered in the first year of the APFA/NFL in 1920, only two teams remain today, do you know who they are?

See all the championship matchups, not only of teams but together with their respective coaches and quarterbacks. See all the teams with three or more consecutive appearances in a championship game and what are the only two teams to have that distinction in the Super Bowl era (1966 to present). What team appeared in 10 consecutive championship games?

The Seasons section is created to allow the reader to not only see the stats for the year of a given team but to also have the names of the coaches and quarterbacks for that year. With this you can appreciate and see how coaches and quarterbacks move from team to team or remain with a given team year after year. You can also see how and when teams move from city to city or change ownership and names.

Learn who are the for oldest teams still playing the game today. How they changed names ownership and locations. Who are they today.

Learn the notable events that have happened like the creation of the fourth AFL league in 1960 and then the merger with the NFL 10 years later. How the NFL addresses disparity in the number of teams merged from the AFL, which teams change leagues and what are the leagues changed in to. How many leagues start and end after the 1970 merger of the NFL and AFL. Who starts what team and where. What coaches and quarterbacks play for these teams and then make a name for themselves in the NFL.

The Almanac format allows the reader to visualize from year to year the changes in team names, cities, coaches and quarterbacks. Also to look at teams when they were strong in a certain time frame and with which coach and quarterback at the helm.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Dec 28, 2017
• ISBN: 9781543922820

Book preview

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

ISBN: 978-1-5439228-2-0

90 Years of Football Almanac 1920 - 2009

A football almanac with ready references to season standings by team, coaches and quarterbacks.

APFA/NFL 1920 – 2009

AFL-I 1927

AFL-II 1936 & 1937

AFL-III 1940 & 1941

AAFC 1946 – 1949

AFL 1960 – 1969

AFL & NFL Merger 1970

WFL 1974 & 1975

USFL 1983 – 1985

Notable Events*Leagues*Teams previous names*Oldest teams playing*The Quarterback Origin

Each season listed with team championship, playoff results, standing, coach and most notable quarterback or passers for the early years.

ALMANAC SECTIONS

PREFACE

INTRODUCTION

THE QUARTERBACK POSITION AND ITS ORIGIN

THE LEAGUES

NOTABLE EVENTS

THE FOUR OLDEST TEAMS PLAYING TODAY

PREVIOUS NAMES AND CITIES OF CURRENT NFL TEAMS

CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHUP’S

THE ORIGINAL FOURTEEN TEAMS

SEASONS FROM 1920 TO 2009 WITH COACH AND QUATERBACK’S

LIST OF CHAMPIONS

PREFACE

Dear reader, I as most of you am a fan of the game and a bit of a history buff. Several years ago I found myself wanting to know more about the beginning of the Super Bowl. I was curious as to why one team seemed to have played in one for one league and then in another for the other league (The Baltimore Colts). As I started researching, the information I was finding just became as interesting to me or maybe even more than the current games on tv. This started me down a path I would not anticipate the outcome which is what you are about to experience in the following pages. Although all this information is readily available thru the internet, I wanted to see things arranged in a certain way that made sense to me and was what I mostly wanted to see. I realize there is a lot more statistics today than ever, and I do not cover all the positions, but my intention with this book is to have a simple quick reference to the history and not to concentrate on the unlimited amount of statistics and data available on the internet today. I also focus more on teams’ changes in names, cities, ownership or interesting trivia about them vs. their statistics or standings.

INTRODUCTION

Although American Professional Football has been dominated by the well-known National Football League, the ninety years since organized professional leagues came about have seen multiple leagues created and compete for the revenues derived by professional sports since their inception.

Considered the Father of American Football Walter Camp helped mold the game in its initial stages as it converted from its origins in Scottish Rugby. The rules established by Camp for moving the ball a minimum of five yards within three downs and the establishment of a line of scrimmage would be the defining factors that would distinguished the game of American Football. Mostly played at the colligate level in the 1880’s it starts taking hold in cities and neighborhoods as clubs and Athletic Associations start picking up the game. These Athletic Association and Clubs would be the origin of Professional American Football.

During the early 1900’s the game would start taking shape but see a decline at the club and Athletic Association level due to the numerous injuries and even deaths at games. It would find a resurgence by the end of the second decade of the 20th century and in 1920 the first Professional League was born. Until 1920 teams would play mostly regional or inter-city games such as in the Ohio League or the New York Professional Football League. The creation of this new league would have teams from these Leagues compete on a more national level.

In this early period there were no set schedules and teams had to book their own games with other teams and without limitation as to the amount of games to be played. Teams could also schedule games with teams outside the league from other associations. As of the second season in 1921 only games played within the league counted towards the final standing. Independent associations or minor leagues were prevalent during this era and continued being a factor thru out American football history giving way to most of the leagues that would challenge the better-established NFL.

In the first 15 years (1920-1935) of recorded professional football leagues, the nation and fans were finding their way as teams folded almost as quickly as they were created. By the end of the twenties, out of 66 teams that formed within two professional leagues, 46 teams in the NFL folded. And in the second professional league to emerge, the AFL I started and ended with all teams folding after only one season.

Most teams of the day were formed from associations or clubs that played before joining a professional league. Some would even continue to play in non-professional associations that were common in the day after leaving a professional league. Many teams would change names or cities as teams were sold sometimes almost from season to season. At the end of the 1926 season the NFL decides to eliminate most of the non-performing teams as the league had grown to 22 teams. The 1927 season would only have 10 teams.

During the 30’s things started to settle down and by 1935 we see the NFL with most of the teams that are still in existence today and only competition leagues rising and falling within a season or two. Because of tie at the end of the 1932 season resulting in a season ending playoff game, in 1933 the NFL splits into 2 divisions, Eastern and Western and starts a Championship competition between the divisions with a final game each season. In 1935 we also see the NFL draft start, a brain child of Bert Bell co-founder of the Philadelphia Eagles who would later become Commissioner of the NFL from 1946 to 1959. Although only inter league games were counted towards the standings, teams would continue to play each other through the end of January after league competition would end for the season in December and play other teams from minor leagues or even collegiate teams.

By 1953 two more AFL leagues rise and fall and a third league the AAFC makes a good run at winning fan base from 1946 to 1949. Having made an impact but with most franchises in financial trouble the AAFC agrees to merge with the NFL. Only three teams are added in to the NFL for the 1950 season. These would be the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49rs and a Baltimore Colts. This Colts franchise only played one season (1950) and is not related to the current franchise in Indianapolis The NFL temporarily changes its name to National-American Football League after the merger but reverts back to the NFL only after a few months.

The NFL stood out and became the prominent league. The teams from the 1953 season are still in existence today without any folding and with only some minor changes. The one exception is the Cleveland Brown franchise which is the only to suspend operations in 1996 but brought back 3 years later due to fan based loyalty. In the NFL after 1953 we only see expansion teams added and the merger with the fourth AFL.

In 1960 the most notable AFL league comes into competition with the NFL which ultimately results in a merger in 1970. The NFL then splits into 2 conferences, the National Football Conference (NFC) and American Football Conference (AFC) each with three divisions; East, Central and West. Most teams remain in their respective original leagues but three teams from the NFL were crossed over to the AFC in order to have equal amounts of teams in each conference, the Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Colts and the Pittsburg Steelers.

In 1966 we see the beginning of the Super Bowl era pitting together the winners of each league against each other in one final game at the end of each season. From 1966 to 1969 although commonly referred to as Super bowls I thru IV, these games were actually named AFL-NFL World Championship Games. The Super Bowl as it is known today was not played until the 1970 merger of both leagues.

After the 1970 merger of the fourth AFL and NFL, two more leagues rise in competition only to fail within a few years. The WFL (World Football League) from 1974 to 1975 and the USFL (United States Football League) from 1983 to 1985.

In the following pages are each season standings listing the Coach(s) and Quarterback(s) for that season. Each team in its corresponding league division and or conference.

THE QUARTERBACK POSITION AND ITS ORIGIN

The name Quarterback originates from the distance a back was positioned from the line of scrimmage, three-quarters back. In the early years or first decades of professional football the quarterback position was not allowed to pass, this position would only take the snap from center and then hand off to a tail back or wing back who would then run or pass the ball. Passing was used very little during this period. The quarterback was more often called the blocking back because after handing off he would block for the runner. Because there was no play calling allowed from the sideline, the quarterback would mostly be responsible for calling the plays and the player would often also be the coach of the team.

Forward passing tail backs became more popular after various rule changes in 1933 which made the passing game more attractive. Before these changes, the