Movement has been a theme for the Rams throughout their history. The franchise originated in Cleveland, moved to Los Angeles, dipped to St. Louis and then headed back to LA in 2016. Their movement is a tad exhausting, yet the L.A. Rams are the only NFL team to win championships while representing three different cities.
Wherever the team went, they always seemed to make it work in the city they called home. While we’re on the subject of relocation, that got me thinking of where the league could expand to next. There are so many untapped markets the NFL could take advantage of. Las Vegas was once one of those markets before the Raiders landed there in 2020.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell had a fun exercise in his June 24 article in which he picked ideal cities if the NFL expanded to 100 teams. Some of his suggestions were quite out there like Bozeman, Montana, San Juan, Puerto Rico and Anchorage, Alaska. (Who the hell wants to play in Alaska?)
Other suggestions made more sense including Memphis, Oklahoma City, Salt Lake City, San Antonio and Albuquerque. I have a really cool idea for a possible Albuquerque franchise—given “Breaking Bad” was set in the city, they can be called the Albuquerque Blue. Their mascot would be dressed like one of the chickens in the Los Pollos Hermanos logo. This idea would be a win-win but I’m sure the league would frown upon a team being named after a prohibited substance. I wonder if the UFL is looking to expand.
Anyway, there is zero chance the NFL would expand to 100 teams. Upping the team count to 34 or 36 franchises would be pretty realistic however. Rams fans, my question to you is what city should the NFL look into if it were looking to expand? Should the league give St. Louis another chance or should it try out an untapped market instead? What about outside the United States like Canada or England?
Let me know what you’re thinking in the comments! Bonus points if you can come up with a fun team name.
Chris Lee/St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Tribune News Service via Getty Images