The NFL features the 32 most elite American Football franchises in the world and is a sport that dates back to the 1900s. However, the Arizona Cardinals predate the NFL, founded as an official club in 1898 making them the oldest NFL team. In 1898, they were founded under the title of the Morgan Athletic Club in Chicago. In its early days, the Morgan Athletic Group was simply a group of people who gathered to play football in the south side of Chicago.
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The club has come a long way from there, moving constantly and relocating to avoid going bankrupt. In 1901, a Chicago painting and building contractor, Chris O’Brien acquired the team and renamed them the Racine Street Cardinals. The team joined the American Professional Football Association in 1920 (rebranded as the NFL two years later). In 1922, the team changed its name to the Chicago Cardinals which it stuck with till 1959.
The Cardinals have a deep history from there on. They relocated multiple times and reached many memorable highs, while also facing the lowest of lows.
Arizona hosts the Cardinals currently, although the team has been mired in mediocrity as of late. Arizona has Kyler Murray at quarterback, and the hope is that he will eventually break out to be the franchise player Arizona saw in him when they picked him first overall.
Read on to learn more about the Cardinals’ history, and where and how exactly the NFL’s oldest reached the point they’re at now.
The Arizona Cardinals Have a Deep History as the NFL’s Oldest Team
The team had an extremely successful run from 1925 to 1947. They won the NFL championship in 1925 and would reach the finals twice against Philadelphia in the years following World War II, winning in 1947.
However, the 1950s weren’t kind to the Cardinals. They faced multiple losing seasons and would lose out to their rivals the Chicago Bears. Eventually, owner Violet Bidwill Wolfner decided the team needed a change of scenery. The Cardinals relocated to St. Louis, a move the NFL approved as the American Football League came to fruition. St. Louis didn’t change much in terms of success, however.
The team stayed in St. Louis from 1960 to 1987, advancing to the playoffs a mere three times. Once more, owner Bill Bidwill decided the team needed a new environment. He took the team to Phoenix, Arizona after the 1987 season, the new permanent home of the Cardinals. Initially, the team was named the Phoenix Cardinals before changing to the Arizona Cardinals in 1994.
Since then, they’ve had an up-and-down time in the NFL. They’ve gone as far as reaching the Super Bowl, but they’ve also held the worst record in the league at some point. Kurt Warner led the Cardinals all the way to the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history in 2008, but they fell to the Steelers in the big game.
In total, the Cardinals have relocated twice, going from Chicago to St. Louis, and then from St. Louis to Phoenix. The team has produced several big names over the course of its history.
Of course, no name stands bigger than WR Larry Fitzgerald. His career numbers of 1,432 receptions and 17,492 yards are second all-time only to Jerry Rice. His streak of 256 consecutive games with a catch is also second all-time to just Jerry Rice.
Fitzgerald’s career is as complete as you’d want it to be, with the exception of a Super Bowl win. Other legends include Larry Wilson, Dan Dierdorf, Kurt Warner, Charley Trippi, and more.
