The connection between ornithology and North American professional sports is most visible in the National Football League, where five teams have bird names. The NFL is the place to be if you enjoy the Ravens, Eagles, Falcons, Cardinals, and, of course, the Seahawks. The game...
The game itself is called the "American sport," which is a nice way of saying that it is based on rugby but with a lot more hitting involved. There are now also two independent football leagues: the Fall Experimental Football League and the Spring Alliance of Professional Indoor Football.
In addition to these six NFL teams, there was once a team named the Bawks. They played only one season in 1972. And then there's the Canadian Football League, whose teams include the Argonauts, Beavers, Bengals, Blue Jays, and Roughriders. Each of these teams has a bird as its logo. The Baltimore Orioles were originally called the Boston Braves, and they still use a bird as their logo even though they're not affiliated with an NFL team. Finally, there are several European clubs with avian names, including Chelsea FC, Dunfermline Athletic, and West Ham United.
Five raptors are named after sports clubs in the National Football League (NFL), National Basketball Association (NBA), National Hockey League (NHL), and Major League Baseball (MLB). The Seattle Seahawks (NFL); the osprey serves as inspiration for this squad. I feel this one speaks for itself. The Portland Beavers, now known as the Indios de Corozal, had a sparrow as their mascot from 1912 to 1914. In 1915, they replaced it with a macaw.
The Buffalo Braves, Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, and Detroit Tigers all have birds as their mascots.
There are currently 16 species of birds that serve as sports team mascots worldwide, including the American eagle, Australian black cockatoo, Brazilian capuchin, Canadian jay, Chinese crane, Indian peacock, Japanese macaque, Korean white rabbit, Mexican pygmy owl, New Zealand kiwi, Philippine duck, Puerto Rican coot, Russian cormorant, and Swedish woodpecker.
Of these, only the American eagle, Australian black cockatoo, Brazilian capuchin, Chinese crane, Indian peacock, Japanese macaque, Korean white rabbit, Mexican pygmy owl, New Zealand kiwi, Philippine duck, Puerto Rican coot, Russian cormorant, and Swedish woodpecker have been adopted as official mascots by more than one sports team.
Five groups Pause, repeat after me: In case you didn't know, there are five NFL clubs who employ birds as mascots. The NFC's Seattle Seahawks, Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, and Philadelphia Eagles are the only birdbrains, while the Baltimore Ravens are the only birdbrains in the AFC. All told, there are 15 different species of birds used as NFL mascots over the years.
Here is a list of all NFL mascots that are birds: Eddie the Eagle (1976-present), Doug Flutie (1984), Bert Emanuel (1985), Snoopy (1986), Goober Schulz (1987), Ghoulia (1988), Tugg Speedman (1989), Slappy White (1990), Gizmo the Great Pyewacket (1991), Mr. Peanut (1992), Ike Taylor (1993), Mike Davis (1994), Kevin Greene (1995), and Rudy (1996).
Birds have been used as sports mascots since at least 1917, when the Chicago Bears employed a bird as their mascot. Since then, several other teams have used birds as their mascots, including parrots with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1920, a eagle with the Detroit Lions in 1930, and a hawk with the Cleveland Browns in 1946.
However, it was not until 1976 that an entire team adopted a bird as their mascot. The Seattle Seahawks hired a condor named pause that would fly around Russell Athletic Stadium during home games.
Many of the most obvious nicknames are based on nothing more than the color of the team's jersey. Take, for example, the city of Liverpool. There are two teams who have played in the top division of English football for the majority, if not all, of their existence.
The connection between ornithology and North American professional sports is most visible in the National Football League, where five teams have bird names. The NFL is the place to be if you enjoy the Ravens, Eagles, Falcons, Cardinals, and, of course, the Seahawks.
Coach Chuck Knox's cautious, ball-control offense is known by this moniker. The Philadelphia Eagles are known as the Iggles. Homeland Defense: The New England Patriots' defense during their Super Bowl XXXVIII and XXXIX campaigns. The offensive line of the Washington Redskins of the 1980s was known as the Hogs.
The moniker given to the 1977 Atlanta Falcons defense, which was directed by defensive assistant Jerry Glanville and allowed the fewest points per game (9.2) in NFL history. Ground Chuck is Coach Chuck Knox's cautious, ball-control offense. The Philadelphia Eagles are abbreviated as the Iggles.
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