The XFL on Friday in response to a fan's tweet asking when the "new" league will have franchise nicknames said that each of the eight teams set to kick off in 2020 will be named in "a few months." I figured I'd get the party started early with some suggestions, so I listed two potential nicknames for each city's squad, along with a few bonus options at the end of the post. Many, if not most, of the monikers below were used by other sports teams at some point over the last 100 years, which I did mainly to honor said previous teams, though I also tried to be original when possible.
Dallas:
Desperados - The name of an arena football team that played from 2002 to 2008. I also like the alliteration.
Demons - This was the nickname of the San Francisco franchise in the first XFL. I'd love to see it re-purposed, which, as above, would create an alliteration.
Houston:
Comets - It stays with the space theme of multiple Houston sports teams, like the Houston Rockets. The name "Houston Comets" also sounds a little like a high school that's local to me, which also has the nickname "Comets."
Galaxy - More space-themed nicknames! Plus, the Frankfurt Galaxy played in NFL Europe, and the other football has the LA Galaxy in the MLS.
Los Angeles:
Xtreme - The nickname of the first XFL team that called Los Angeles home, the same one that Tommy Maddox played for between stints in the NFL. Would also have the same acronym, LAX, as the Los Angeles International Airport.
Crushers - It's tough, good for a new football team. It also stays with the "LAC" abbreviations of the Clippers and Chargers.
New York:
Titans - Pays homage to the original name of the New York Jets, who played as the Titans from 1960 through 1962. It sounds powerful and tough, like New York itself.
Night Hawks - There are birds in New York City, though I'm not sure if night hawks are actually animals or not (a few quick Google searches make me lean towards "no," though there is a painting, plus various other sports teams). New York Night Hawks is catchy and there's a certain satisfaction in having each of the four words in the team's name be exactly one syllable.
Seattle:
Seals - It uses the technique of alliteration, which so many Seattle franchises employ. If hockey doesn't take it, I think the XFL should. SBNation's Satchel Price wrote a post about a year ago in which he said he'd pick this name for a hockey team, and I agree that it sounds good for an NHL franchise.
Slew - Not sure if this would be allowed, but it would be a fantastic tribute to a great (animal) athlete from another era.
St. Louis:
Spirits - I'll admit this isn't really a tough name, and we are talking about football, but the franchise would share a name with an ABA franchise from the 1970s. Maybe they could have ghosts on their helmets.
Skyhawks - The St. Louis franchise would also share a nickname if the XFL went with "Skyhawks," but the fictional (I think) bird seems to make more sense than my alternative, Soul. A quick Google search suggests there is a music scene in the Missouri city, but not quite enough to make me think such a moniker would truly fit a sports team based there.
Tampa Bay:
Bandits - The Tampa Bay Bandits were a USFL team. Also, pirates! Sort of ....
Mutiny - Another soccer nickname, they played in MLS from 1996 to 2001. I also love that it keeps with the pirate theme of the Buccaneers.
Washington:
Senators - A pro football team that played three games in 1921 and obviously fits in with the city's functions. If the XFL doesn't use it, I think it's a good candidate to be a new nickname for the NFL franchise located in the nation's capital.
Capitals - Speaking of capitals, I'm going to copy off the NHL for the Washington team's second nickname option. That's a little bit of a cop-out, but the backups are Federals (yuck!) and Americans (I just don't like the sound of "Washington Americans." It's almost redundant).
Bonuses:
St. Louis Stallions - I thought I had heard this somewhere before, and I also thought it was brilliant. A little bit of research, and I learned it was supposed to be an NFL franchise, and I thought we could finally bring it to life in the XFL. KMOX agreed. Then I realized the Salt Lake Stallions are set to begin play in about a month when the Alliance of American Football kicks off for the first time. Well, at least the AAF franchise's name has a nice ring to it.
St. Louis Soul - The franchise would share a nickname with arena football's Philadelphia Soul.
Los Angeles Express - It was a USFL franchise, but it's also going to be used by the AAF's Memphis Express.
New York Empires - It's the Empire State, so it makes perfect sense! But there are already at least two New York sports teams with the nickname "Empire," so I didn't want to copy, but the more research I do, the more I think that none of the nicknames I came up with are actually original.
Dallas Texans - The original name for the Kansas City Chiefs franchise when it first kicked off in 1960, among others, but, again, I tried not to copy too many other active professional sports teams' nicknames (i.e. the Houston Texans).
Houston Gamblers - A USFL team whose nickname I considered somewhat strongly for the XFL thanks to the growing acceptance of gambling, but I ultimately wanted to go with the space theme instead.
Tampa Tamarins - Tamarins are a type of monkey that do, in fact, reside at Busch Gardens in Tampa, and I liked the alliteration, but the pirate theme is already established. Plus, a team named after monkeys just doesn't seem to fit with football or sports.
Seattle Sharks - I'm not sure why I didn't consider this more strongly, though I do like "Slew" and "Seals" as solid options.
Washington Federals - I mentioned this above, and I'd also like to point out it was a USFL franchise.
Washington Americans - A football team based in Buffalo, New York used the nickname "All-Americans" during the early 1920s.
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