The NFL teams consists of 32 clubs. Each NFL team club is allowed a maximum of 53 players on their roster, but they may only dress 45 to play each week during the regular season. In its earliest years, the NFL teams were a very unstable and somewhat informal organization. Many NFL teams entered and left the league annually. However, since the acquisition of the All-America Football Conference in 1950, the NFL teams have shown remarkable stability. The last NFL team to fold was the Dallas Texans in 1952.
Though the NFL teams only plays in the fall and early winter, the extended offseason often is an event in itself, with the draft, free agency signings, and the announcement of NFL schedules keeping the NFL teams in the spotlight even during the spring, when virtually no on-field activity is taking place. |