The wait is over. It’s time for our 2025 NFL expansion series. If you’re new here, the four-part annual series dives into what an NFL expansion team might really look like each year—from city to branding to staff to the expansion draft and full inaugural roster. The last NFL expansion draft was the Texans in 2002, and who knows when (or if) we get a 33rd NFL team. So, this is a fun exercise to explore, and let’s jump in with Part I.
Windfall conducted a study of the best spots in the United States for the next NFL franchise, and I used that as inspiration for the options of home city for the 2025 NFL expansion team.
City
Austin, Texas
Texas might do football bigger than anyone, and the massive state has room for one more franchise. The Austin area has a population of 2.4 million with a high median net worth and just one big professional sports team (Austin FC in the MLS). The Texas Longhorns are the headlining show in Austin, but we can complement their Saturdays in the fall with NFL football on Sundays.
San Diego, California
The Riverside, California area to the east of Los Angeles is seen as a potential option for an NFL expansion team, but the Rams and Chargers might not be happy to have competition so close—so we can instead explore someplace like Sacramento or San Diego. Given that San Diego hosted the Chargers for over five decades, there should be appetite and some infrastructure for a franchise. St. Louis deserves an honorable mention as formerly having an NFL team, too.
Orlando, Florida
Cities in Texas, California, and Florida is definitely slanting in favor of the big guys. But the logistics for Orlando make a ton of sense with their established footprint from the Pro Bowl Games. Camping World Stadium is getting $400 million in renovations, which is a key reason a fourth NFL team in the state could happen if the league were to expand.
Salt Lake City, Utah
While a bit lower in population metrics compared to the first three metropolitan areas (1.3 million compared to over 2 million for Austin, San Diego, and Orlando), Utah is a rapidly growing state with Salt Lake City as a great hub and picturesque area. The NHL has recently added a team in SLC, and the cold-weather vibes are a boost for their chances.
London, England
Toronto and Mexico City are two other options among international cities, but if the NFL makes a move abroad it’ll likely start with London. The iconic city has hosted 36 NFL games, by far the most of any location outside of the United States. The population is massive, and the fans are rabid for American football—but the realities of hosting a team across the pond might be a challenge.
Choice: Austin, Texas
While I was initially not expecting Austin as the choice when considering all options because of the presence of the Cowboys and Texans, the Windfall study has them as the No. 1 choice to get an NFL expansion team, and it made more sense the more I thought about it. This would essentially (hopefully) be a joint fanbase with San Antonio a little further south and currently possessing the Alamodome to host games until we build a new state-of-the-art stadium closer to Austin. The one downside for me is that this isn’t a cold-weather city, but Texas gets its third NFL franchise.
Team Name
Bats
The Austin area has a ton of bats that reside under the Congress Avenue Bridge (an estimated 1.5 million of them), so Bats is an easy fit for team name. They’re somewhat intimidating creatures and would give us a bit of an edge while branding the team with logos and colors.
Armadillos
Sticking with another animal found in Texas, Armadillos would bring easy alliteration to our team name. However, a major downside is that it’s not as imposing as other animals and other team name options.
Imperials
The city name Austin has roots in the name Augustus—a name meaning “majestic” and the taken name of the first Roman emperor. So, we can take that angle with a team name like Imperials. It would be a regal, classic option—perhaps with a golden eagle logo and branding—with broad appeal.
Centurions
Centurions is another related option, which could potentially catch on like the Greek Spartan name has in sports. Centurions feels like something that hardcore fans especially would get behind and buy gear to support.
Rogues
Outlaws, Renegades, and Rogues are all natural fits for Texas as a whole. I like Rogues best, with it bringing a tad less negative connotation—and it’s another option that just sounds good, along with obvious branding possibilities.
Choice: Rogues
We have some good options, but Austin Rogues is the pick. Texas played a significant role in the era of the Wild West, and rogue figures were a huge part of that energy.
Head Coach
Bill Belichick
Could we convince Bill Belichick to lead an expansion team instead of taking the North Carolina job in college football? It frankly might be one of his only ways back into the league given how many ownership groups and front offices are apparently intimidated by the eight-time Super Bowl champion’s presence. But to keep things a tad more realistic, we’ll say he ends up at Chapel Hill.
Mike McCarthy
This one makes more sense, as Mike McCarthy—after not getting the Bears job—decided to take a year off from coaching. I’m a fan of his and the job he did with the Cowboys, and don’t forget he’s a championship coach. My guess is he’d still practice patience with an eye toward 2026, though.
Jon Gruden
How about a Super Bowl champion head coach who is clearly dying to get back into the league? Jon Gruden is slowly being forgiven for past transgressions, including with the Buccaneers rightly putting him back into their Ring of Honor. There’s no question Gruden can coach football and loves the game as much as anyone.
Brian Flores
I think it’s time for Brian Flores to get another opportunity as a head coach, too. Just look at the job he’s done with Minnesota’s defense, causing complete headaches for many opposing quarterbacks and offenses. One downside to Flores is he might prefer a better situation with an established quarterback instead of a rookie likely leading the way.
Kliff Kingsbury
Kliff Kingsbury did a heck of job with the Commanders offense in 2024, and he was previously in a tough spot with the Cardinals but showed definite competence as a head coach. Ultimately, Kingsbury opts to return to Washington with Jayden Daniels, as he did in real life.
Choice: Jon Gruden
I’m going with realism here, as I believe Coach Gruden would eagerly jump at the opportunity to lead the Rogues. Plus, Gruden could be tailor-made to the way the league is heading, as strong running games versus two-high defenses are critical in today’s game.
Offensive Coordinator
Doug Pederson
The collapse in Jacksonville was certainly more on the front office than it was Doug Pederson, but—though he could get head coach consideration for us—I wouldn’t be surprised if Pederson wanted to get back to focusing on offense before potentially pursuing a third head coaching opportunity.
Greg Olson
Greg Olson and Jon Gruden worked together with both the Buccaneers and the Raiders, so the chemistry is there and can be a serious benefit for an expansion team starting from scratch.
Marc Trestman
During his first stint with the franchise, Gruden hired Trestman with the Raiders in 2001. Trestman is still thankful for the opportunity, and Gruden has always spoken highly of him.
Choice: Marc Trestman
While Pederson considers the opportunity, he decides to take a year off from coaching instead of becoming an OC. The relationship Gruden has with Trestman will hopefully make it a seamless installation of the offense for all the new players we have coming in—and we might be able to get Olson as the quarterbacks coach, his current position with Vegas in real life.
Defensive Coordinator
Dennis Allen
This is the most obvious choice, as Dennis Allen had Gruden consult while the head coach of the Saints. There’s a lot of respect there, but Allen took the defensive coordinator job in Chicago and might prefer that to joining an expansion squad.
Mike Zimmer
Gruden’s brother Jay and Mike Zimmer worked together as the offensive and defensive coordinators for the Bengals from 2011-2013, and Zimmer would be a fit as someone who’ll bring a similar no-nonsense scowl as Gruden on the sidelines.
Jim Leonard
This one is more off the radar in terms of connections to our head coach, but Jim Leonard did an excellent job as the defensive coordinator at Wisconsin from 2017-2022 and hasn’t been in a DC role since then—he started as an assistant with the Broncos last year and has been promoted to assistant head coach, showing how highly they think of him.
Choice: Jim Leonard
Frankly, Leonard is just 42 years old, and that relative youth could be a boost for a veteran coaching staff. The 3-4 defense is different than what Gruden has traditionally employed, but Leonard can be flexible in how he deploys his talent—and most teams are using sub defenses as their base package today, anyway.
General Manager
We are not hiring a traditional general manager—and we will not have an expansive scouting staff, either. Instead, we will work closely with the coaching staff and push to build a championship roster with people who know what they’re doing.
Check back tomorrow for Part II of the 2025 NFL expansion series, with the NFL Expansion Draft!