Team owner Barron Hilton sponsored a name-the-team contest and promised a trip to Mexico City to the winner in 1960. Gerald Courtney submitted “Chargers” and Hilton reportedly liked the name so much that he didn’t open another letter.
There are varying accounts as to why Hilton chose Chargers for his franchise, which spent one year in Los Angeles before relocating to San Diego. (The franchise is back in the Los Angeles area for the 2017 season.) According to one story, Hilton liked the name, in part, for its affiliation with his new Carte Blanche credit card. The owner also told reporters that he was fond of the “Charge!” bugle cry played at the Los Angeles Coliseum.
LA Rams:
The Rams, who originated in Cleveland in 1936 and spent 1946 through 1994 in the Los Angeles area before moving to St. Louis, came back to LA last season. The team traces their nickname to the college ranks. Principal owner Homer Marshman and general manager Damon “Buzz” Wetzel chose the nickname because Wetzel’s favorite football team had always been the Fordham Rams. Fordham—Vince Lombardi’s alma mater—was a powerhouse at the time.
Miami:
A name-the-team contest drew nearly 20,000 entries and resulted in the nickname for the Miami franchise that entered the AFL as an expansion team in 1966. More than 600 fans suggested Dolphins, but Marjorie Swanson was declared the winner after correctly predicting a tie in the 1965 college football game between Miami and Notre Dame as part of a follow-up contest. Swanson, who won a lifetime season pass to Dolphins games, told reporters she consulted a Magic 8-Ball before predicting the score of the game. Miami owner Joe Robbie was fond of the winning nickname because, as he put it, “The dolphin is one of the fastest and smartest creatures in the sea.”
Minnesota:
According to the Vikings’ website, Bert Rose, Minnesota’s general manager when it joined the NFL in 1961, recommended the nickname to the team’s Board of Directors because “it represented both an aggressive person with the will to win and the Nordic tradition in the northern Midwest.” The expansion franchise also became the first pro sports team to feature its home state, rather than a city, in the team name.
New England:
Seventy-four fans suggested Patriots in the name-the-team contest that was conducted by the management group of Boston’s original AFL franchise in 1960. “Pat Patriot,” the cartoon of a Minuteman preparing to snap a football drawn by the Boston Globe’s Phil Bissell, was chosen as the team’s logo soon after. While the first part of the team’s name changed from Boston to New England in 1971, Patriots remained.
New Orleans:
New Orleans was awarded an NFL franchise on All Saints’ Day, November 1, 1966. The nickname was a popular choice in a name-the-team contest sponsored by the New Orleans States-Item, which announced the news of the new franchise with the headline, “N.O. goes pro!” The nickname, chosen by team owner John Mecom, was a nod to the city’s jazz heritage and taken from the popular song, “When the Saints Go Marching In.”
NY Giants:
New York owner Tim Mara borrowed the Giants nickname from John McGraw’s National League baseball team, a common practice by football teams during an era when baseball was the nation’s preeminent team sport.
NY Jets:
Originally nicknamed the Titans, the team was renamed the Jets in 1963 after Sonny Werblin led an investment group that purchased the bankrupt franchise for $1 million.
According to a contemporary New York Times story, the franchise considered calling itself the Dodgers, but nixed the idea after Major League Baseball didn’t like it. Gothams also got some consideration, but the team didn’t like the idea of having it shortened to the Goths, because “you know they weren’t such nice people.” The last finalist to fall was the New York Borros, a pun on the city’s boroughs; the team worried that opposing fans would make the Borros-burros connection and derisively call the squad the jackasses.
Eventually the team became the Jets since it was going to play in Shea Stadium, which is close to LaGuardia Airport. According to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the name was supposed to reflect the “modern approach of his team.”
Chet Soda, Oakland’s first general manager, sponsored a name-the-team contest in 1960. Helen A. Davis, an Oakland policewoman, submitted the winning entry, Señors, and was rewarded with a trip to the Bahamas. The nickname, an allusion to the old Spanish settlers of northern California, was ridiculed in the weeks that followed, and fans also claimed that the contest was fixed. Scotty Stirling, a sportswriter for the Oakland Tribune who would later become the team’s general manager, provided another reason to abandon the nickname. “That’s no good,” Stirling said. “We don’t have the accent mark for the n in our headline type.” Responding to the backlash, Soda and the team’s other investors decided to change the team’s nickname to Raiders, which was a finalist in the contest along with Lakers.
Philadelphia:
In 1933, Bert Bell and Lud Wray purchased the bankrupt Frankford Yellowjackets. The new owners renamed the team the Eagles in honor of the symbol of the National Recovery Act, which was part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal.
Pittsburgh:
Pittsburgh’s football team shared the same nickname as the city’s baseball team, the Pirates, from 1933 to 1940. Before the 1940 season, owner Art Rooney held a rename-the-team contest. A change couldn’t hurt, as Pittsburgh had failed to post a winning season in its first 7 years. Joe Santoni, who worked in a mill for Pittsburgh Steel, was one of several fans who suggested Steelers. Santoni received a pair of season tickets, which he would renew every year until his death in 2003.
San Francisco:
The 49ers, who began play in the All-America Football Conference in 1946, were named after the settlers who ventured to the San Francisco area during the gold rush of 1849.
Seattle:
There were 1,700 unique names among the more than 20,000 submitted in a name-the-team contest in 1975, including Skippers, Pioneers, Lumberjacks, and Seagulls. About 150 people suggested Seahawks. A Seattle minor league hockey team and Miami’s franchise in the All-America Football Conference both used the nickname in the 1950s. “Our new name suggests aggressiveness, reflects our soaring Northwest heritage, and belongs to no other major league team,” Seattle general manager John Thompson said. The Seahawks’ helmet design is a stylized head of an osprey, a fish-eating hawk of the Northwest.
Tampa Bay:
A panel of local sportswriters and representatives from the NFL expansion team, including owner Hugh F. Culverhouse, chose Buccaneers from an original list of more than 400 names in 1975. The nickname, which was a popular choice among fans in a name-the-team contest, was a nod to the pirates who raided Florida’s coasts during the 17th century.
Tennessee:
After relocating from Houston to Tennessee in 1995, the team played two seasons as the Oilers before owner Bud Adams held a statewide contest to rename the team. Titans was chosen over nicknames such as Tornadoes, Copperheads, South Stars, and Wranglers. “We wanted a new nickname to reflect strength, leadership and other heroic qualities,'' Adams told reporters.
Washington:
One year after he acquired an NFL franchise in Boston, George Preston Marshall changed the team’s nickname from Braves to Redskins. According to most accounts, the nickname was meant to honor head coach and Native American William Henry “Lone Star” Dietz, though some question whether Dietz was a Native American. The Redskins kept their controversial nickname when they relocated to Washington, DC, in 1937.
Feels like the bills throwing in the towel. Tyrod wasn’t playing any worse than last year but I don’t follow them to closely.
Ugh gabbert starting.
We’re not throwing in the towel. Tyrod isn’t playing well, and we want to see what Peterman can do. He had a really good camp and preseason, showed some promise.
We’re not throwing in the towel. Tyrod isn’t playing well, and we want to see what Peterman can do. He had a really good camp and preseason, showed some promise.
Tyrod Taylor has the highest passer rating, completion percentage, adjusted yards per attempt, and the lowest interception percentage in Bills franchise history. He has one bad game and Sean McDermott benches him? Seems pretty desperate.
Coach Sean McDermott announced rookie Nathan Peterman will start Week 11 against the Chargers.
"We were made to be more than 5-4, and I've come here to be more than 5-4," McDermott said. "Really, it's about becoming a better team. Every position is evaluated and that's the direction I decided to go." Taylor and the entire offense is coming off a horrendous Week 10 against the Saints, but that was his first bad game at home. Peterman came in late for mop-up work, playing his first 11 snaps of the season. He went 7-of-10 for 79 yards and a score and was handpicked by McDermott and the new regime as a fifth-rounder. He had a nondescript preseason. His first NFL start will be on the road in L.A. against the Bolts. The offense will continue to run through LeSean McCoy.
Tyrod Taylor has the highest passer rating, completion percentage, adjusted yards per attempt, and the lowest interception percentage in Bills franchise history. He has one bad game and Sean McDermott benches him? Seems pretty desperate.
One bad game? How many Bills games have you watched the last couple years? Stats can be very deceiving. Tyrod is a great athlete and can make plays with his legs, but when defenses take that away he is very limited. He checks down very quickly and has problems going through all his reads. The wildcard is right there for the taking. Tyrod isn’t getting it done. Let’s see what the kid can do.
FOX Sports' Jay Glazer reports the Vikings were "very tempted" to start Teddy Bridgewater this week against the Rams.
Case Keenum got the nod following his big Week 10 performance where he threw for 304 yards and four scores, so coach Mike Zimmer really couldn't go away from him for Week 11. However, it appears the leash is very short for Keenum, and he could be pulled at the first inkling of trouble. Per Glazer, the Vikings view Bridgewater "as their franchise," so they want to get him reps now that he's healthy. Keenum could easily get yanked versus the Rams' top-end defense.
One bad game? How many Bills games have you watched the last couple years? Stats can be very deceiving. Tyrod is a great athlete and can make plays with his legs, but when defenses take that away he is very limited. He checks down very quickly and has problems going through all his reads. The wildcard is right there for the taking. Tyrod isn’t getting it done. Let’s see what the kid can do.
I gotcha but it’s a tough stretch coming up with chargers, chiefs and pats. Plus it’s not tyrods fault the defense allowed 6 rushing touchdowns. Starting a Rookie QB against that D line seems like a super d!ck move. Haha
Not really, Keenum is a journeyman rental, Bridgewater is considered their franchise QB. Wouldn't be surprised if Keenum starts and gets the hook before half-time this week. Better QBs than Keenum have succumbed to bad play looking over their shoulder.
Not really, Keenum is a journeyman rental, Bridgewater is considered their franchise QB. Wouldn't be surprised if Keenum starts and gets the hook before half-time this week. Better QBs than Keenum have succumbed to bad play looking over their shoulder.
Yeah I agree you know what you get with Keenum but Bridgewater still has room to grow. Plus bridgewater is a free agent at the end of the year they need to know if they should sign him to an extension.
I gotcha but it’s a tough stretch coming up with chargers, chiefs and pats. Plus it’s not tyrods fault the defense allowed 6 rushing touchdowns. Starting a Rookie QB against that D line seems like a super d!ck move. Haha
We wouldn't put him out there if we didn't think he was capable of improving the offensive production. Rush defense definitely has to play better, but the offense's lack of ability to get first downs recently certainly isn't helping them out.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Batman1980
I trust that Sean McDermott knows what he's doing.
We wouldn't put him out there if we didn't think he was capable of improving the offensive production. Rush defense definitely has to play better, but the offense's lack of ability to get first downs recently certainly isn't helping them out.
I trust the process, Wolvie. I'm addicted to it.
I wouldn’t trust the process just yet. Trust has to be earned I mean none of us trust the browns or Hue. We shall see if the rookie is in over his head or not. I think it’s more of a coaching having a shot at the postseason for the 1st in how many years? Maybe he is panicking or this rookie will be amazing and lead the bills to the playoffs. I’m very interested to see what happens.
Not really, Keenum is a journeyman rental, Bridgewater is considered their franchise QB. Wouldn't be surprised if Keenum starts and gets the hook before half-time this week. Better QBs than Keenum have succumbed to bad play looking over their shoulder.
And what has Bridgewater done?
I don't care what they are considered - that means squat. Facts are facts and fact is Keenum has been ballin. Bridewater might finally be healthy but he's probably going to be rusty, lack chemistry, and not be the player he was prior to his injury until he's seen decent playing time - of which Minnesota cannot afford to gamble.
I wouldn’t trust the process just yet. Trust has to be earned I mean none of us trust the browns or Hue. We shall see if the rookie is in over his head or not. I think it’s more of a coaching having a shot at the postseason for the 1st in how many years? Maybe he is panicking or this rookie will be amazing and lead the bills to the playoffs. I’m very interested to see what happens.
Always trust the process, kidkash. Always. Part of it certainly is evaluation as well. It’s clear Tyrod isn’t in our future plan. We want to see what we have with Peterman.
Yeah I agree you know what you get with Keenum but Bridgewater still has room to grow. Plus bridgewater is a free agent at the end of the year they need to know if they should sign him to an extension.
Bridgewaters don't grow on trees, I'd let him play it out and then try to re-sign him. Franchise tag is always there. With that running game, those receivers and that defense, they're really just a real play-maker at QB away.
Eagles coach Doug Pederson on Dak Prescott and Carson Wentz: "It doesn't matter who is coaching the Eagles or who is coaching the Cowboys, those two guys are going to be around for a long time. It makes for not only a great rivalry but it makes for a great division."
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