NFL Teams named after states are Arizona Cardinals, Carolina Panthers, Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, New York Jets and Tennessee Titans.
The NFL has 32 teams in the league and only 6 are named after states. The remaining teams are mostly named after the cities they are based.
NY Giants and NY Jets are named after New York and are based out of the New York metropolitan area, but both have their home field and headquarters in New Jersey.
A total of 23 states have NFL teams, with New York, California, and Florida having 3 each. Likewise, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Maryland are the states with two NFL teams.
There is a high probability that football fanatics might get confused when it comes to the Indianapolis Colts. The team is named after the host city, Indianapolis, and is not named after the state, of Indiana.
The distribution of teams across states varies and not every state in the United States have a National League Football team.
Arizona Cardinals
NFL teams by state Arizona has the Arizona Cardinals, which hails from the Valley of the Sun. Cardinals was established in 1898; 125 years ago.
In its long history, the Cardinals started out as the Morgan Athletic Club and were established in Chicago. The Cardinals joined the NFL in 1920 and have been a member since.Β
Arizona has the oldest professional football franchise to be run continuously. The Cardinals have had a few changes to their names in their long and illustrious history.
- Morgan Athletic Club - 1898
- Racine Normals - 1899-1900
- Racine Cardinals - 1901-1906 and1913-1919
- Chicago Cardinals - 1920-1943 and 1945-1959
- Card-Pitt - 1944
- St. Louis Cardinals - 1960-1987
- Phoenix Cardinals - 1988-1993
- Arizona Cardinals - 1994-present
The Redbirds have won 2 NFL Championships in 1925 and 1947 (before the AFL-NLF merger in 1970), 1 Conference Championship in 2008, and 7 Division Championships.
- NFL Western - 1947, 1948
- NFC East - 1974, 1975
- NFC West - 2008, 2009, 2015
The Cardinals were members of the NFC East Division from 1970-2001 and have been members of the NFC West Division since 2002. They play in the State Farm Stadium, in Glendale, Arizona, as their home field since 2006.
Although the team has a long history, they have made only 11 playoff appearances and are yet to win the Super Bowl. Michael Bidwill is the proud owner and Jonathan Gannon is the head coach.
Carolina Panthers
Football teams by state starting with the letter 'C' are the Carolina Panthers. The Carolina football team was established in 1993; 29 years ago.
The Panthers are among the youngest NFL teams as they were the league's 29th team to be announced. They made their NFL debut in 1995 and were members of the NFC West from 1995-2001 and have been members of the NFC South since 2002-present.
The Panthers have eight playoff appearances and two Conference Championships in 2003 and 2015. They also have 6 Division Championships.
- NFC West - 1996
- NFC South - 2003, 2008, 2013, 2014, 2015
The Panthers are one of the 12 teams to have never won a Super Bowl. They appeared in the Super Bowl twice in 2003 and 2015, and both have been in a losing cause.
Carolina has had the Bank of America Stadium since 1996 as their home field. David Tepper is the team owner and Frank Reich is the head coach.
Likewise, the Panthers are among the teams with cat mascots. Sir Purr, an anthropomorphized panther represents the Carolina football team.
Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings are named after the state of Minnesota. Established in 1960, the Minnesota football team's inaugural season was in 1961.
The Vikings have one NFL Championship in their name which they won in 1969 (prior to the NFL-AFL merger). They were members of the NFC Central from 1970-2001 and have been members of the NFC North since 2002-present.
Four Conference Championships of Minnesota:
- NFL Western: 1969
- NFC: 1973, 1974, 1976
Minnesota has also won 21 Division Championships with their first two in 1968 and 1969 (NFL Central).
- 14 NFC Central titles: 1970-1971, 1973-1978, 1980, 1989, 1992, 1994, 1998, and 2000.
- 5 NFC North titles in 2008-2009, 2015, 2017, and 2022.
They have made 31 appearances in the playoffs and won so many titles, yet they have never won the Super Bowl. Interestingly, the Vikings have four appearances in the Super Bowl and have lost all four of them.
The U. S. Bank Stadium has been their home field since 2016. Zygmunt, Leonard, and Mark Wilf are the team owners and Kevin O'Connell is the head coach.
New York Giants
New York Giants were established in 1925 and joined the NFL the same year. The Giants have lifted numerous titles in their 97-year history.
They have 8 NFL Championships in total as of date. The first four were prior to the AFL-NFL merger and won in 1927, 1934, 1938, and 1956.Β
They have 4 Super Bowl championships in 1986 (XXI), 1990 (XXV), 2007 (XLII), and 2011 (XLVI). They also have 11 Conference titles.
- NFL Eastern: 1956, 1958, 1959, 1961-1963
- NFC: 1986, 1990, 2000, 2007, 2011
New York Giants also have 16 Division Championships and 33 playoff appearances in its long history.
- NFL Eastern: 1933-1935, 1938, 1939, 1941, 1944, 1946
- NFC East: 1986, 1989, 1990, 1997, 2000, 2005, 2008, 2011
The Giants have been members of the NFC East since 1970 and use the MetLife Stadium as their home field. John Mara and Steve Tisch are the owners and Brian Daboll is the head coach.
New York Jets
New York Jets are the second team named after the state of New York. The Jets were established in 1959, and their NFL debut was in 1960.
NY Jets were previously in the AFL from 1960-1969 as members of the Eastern Division. Since 1970, they have been members of the AFC East.
In its 63-year history, they have won numerous titles. The Jets won their maiden Super Bowl (III) in 1968 and that was the last. They have not won any Conference Championships and have won 4 Division titles.
- AFL East: 1968, 1969
- AFC East: 1998, 2002
New York Jets have made 14 playoff appearances and their last was in 2010. Since they won their maiden Super Bowl, they have not featured in a single Super Bowl game.
Apart from the common first names, the Jets and the Giants also share a common home field, MetLife Stadium. The Jets have been using it since 2010. Woody and Christopher Johnson are the owners and Robert Saleh is the head coach of the Jets.
Tennessee Titans
Tennessee Titans are named after the state of Tennessee. The team was established in 1959 and debuted as a member of the AFL in 1960.
Since 1970, Tennessee Titans have been members of the AFC; AFC Central from 1970-2001, and AFC South from 2002-present.
The Titans have two league championships before the AFL and NFL merger. They won in 1960 and 1961. In 1999, they won the Conference title.
In 25 appearances in the playoffs, they have won 11 Division Championships.Β
- AFL Eastern: 1960-1962, 1967
- AFC Central: 1991, 1993, 2000
- AFC South: 2002, 2008, 2020, 2021
The Titans are among the teams that have never won a Super Bowl in its history. They had one appearance in the Super Bowl in 2000 but lost the championship game against the St. Louis Rams.
The Titans have the Nissan Stadium as their home field since 1999, and Mike Vrabel is the head coach. Amy Adams Strunk is the controlling owner of the franchise.
