Defunct Teams

The following is a list and brief history of American football franchises that at one time played in the National Football League (NFL). Note that the list represents NFL franchises that no longer exist, not franchises/teams that relocated. more...

Home
Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Ravens
Buffalo Bills
CFL
Carolina Panthers
Chicago Bears
Cincinnati Bengals
Cleveland Browns
Dallas Cowboys
Defunct Teams
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Kansas City Chiefs
Miami Dolphins
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
New Orleans Saints
New York Giants
New York Jets
Oakland Raiders
Other NFL Items
Philadelphia Eagles
Pittsburgh Steelers
San Diego Chargers
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
St. Louis Rams
Super Bowl
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tennessee Titans
Washington Redskins
XFL

However, during the 1920s it is hard to tell if some teams changed nicknames from year to year or if each nickname represented a new franchise. It was also not uncommon for two or more teams to have the same nickname during the same season. No NFL franchise has folded since 1952. The Colts, Giants, Panthers, and Texans franchises listed on this page are not the current franchises of those names.

A defunct team, in this case, refers to a team which has had the rights to have a team returned to the NFL (or league collective at the time).

Teams that won an NFL championship are marked with an asterisk (*).

1920s

Akron Pros / Indians* (1920-26); Boston Bulldogs (1925-29); Brooklyn Lions (1926); Buffalo All Americans / Bisons / Rangers (1920-29); Canton Bulldogs* (1920-26); Chicago Tigers (1920); Cincinnati Celts (1921); Cleveland Bulldogs* (1923-27); Cleveland Tigers (1920-21); Columbus Panhandles / Tigers (1920-26); Dayton Triangles (1920-29); Detroit Heralds (1920); Detroit Panthers (1921); Detroit Tigers (1925-26); Detroit Wolverines (1928); Duluth Kelleys / Eskimos (1923-27); Evansville Crimson Giants (1921-22); Frankford Yellow Jackets* (1924-31); Hammond Pros (1920-26); Hartford Blues (1926); Kansas City Blues / Cowboys (1924-26); Kenosha Maroons (1924); Los Angeles Buccaneers (1926); Louisville Brecks / Colonels (1921-23, 1926); Milwaukee Badgers (1922-26); Minneapolis Marines / Red Jackets (1921-24, 1929-31); Muncie Flyers (1920-21); New York Giants (1921); New York Yankees (1926-28); Newark Tornadoes (1930); Oorang Indians (1922-23); Orange Tornadoes (1929); Pottsville Maroons* (1925-28); Providence Steam Roller* (1925-31); Racine Legion (1922-24); Racine Tornadoes (1926); Rochester Jeffersons (1920-25); Rock Island Independents (1920-25); Staten Island Stapletons (1929-32); St. Louis All Stars (1923); Toledo Maroons (1922-23); Tonawanda Kardex (1921); Washington Senators (1921);

1930s

Brooklyn Dodgers/Tigers (1930-44); Cincinnati Reds (1933-34); Cleveland Indians (1931); St. Louis Gunners (1934);

1940s-1950s

Baltimore Colts (1950); Boston Yanks (1944-48); Dallas Texans (1952); New York Bulldogs (1949); New York Yanks (1950);

Read more at Wikipedia.org