In 1925, the NFL wanted to add a New York City franchise to the league to draw more fans. At the time, college football was still more popular than the professional game.
Although the league had begun play in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association (APFA)—changing its name to the National Football League in 1922—the nation's largest city did not have a team. A team known as the New York Brickley Giants played two games in the APFA in 1921, but it quickly folded.
NFL President Joseph Carr offered a franchise to New York boxing promoter Billy Gibson.