The Birmingham Iron was a professional American football franchise based in Birmingham, Alabama, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which played eight regular season games from February 2019 to April 2019. They played their home games at Legion Field. The Iron were coached by former National Football League player and coach Tim Lewis. Trey Brown was the executive vice president of football operations and Joe Pendry was the general manager.
On April 2, 2019, the league's football operations were reportedly suspended, and on April 4 the league allowed players to leave their contracts to sign with NFL teams. The league filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on April 17, 2019.
Contents
History
The team was announced as a charter team of the Alliance of American Football on June 4, 2018. The team's first head coach was announced on June 6 as Tim Lewis, his first job at the position. On September 20, the league announced four eastern inaugural franchises' names and logos, including Birmingham as the Birmingham Iron. The name is a tribute to the city's iron industry, while the team colors of black, dark grey, and light grey were based on iron ore, coal, and flux, the components used to make steel.
The final 52-man roster was set on January 30, 2019. The team's first game was at home against the Memphis Express on February 10, 2019, when the Iron registered their first win and the first shutout in league history.
On March 31, the Iron clinched a playoff berth with a win against Atlanta, though the playoffs were never played as the league suspended football operations on April 2. The Iron finished at a 5–3 record.
Final roster
Allocation pool
The team's assigned area, which designated player rights, included the following:
2019 season
Schedule
† Changed from original time and/or network
Game summaries
The Iron began their season at home against the Express. In the first quarter, the Iron scored when Nick Novak kicked a 29-yard field goal to make it 3–0. They would increase their lead in the second quarter when Novak kicked 28-yard and 47-yard field goals to make it 6–0 and then 9–0 at halftime. After a scoreless third quarter, the Iron managed to pull away from the Express after Trent Richardson ran for a 4-yard touchdown to make it 17–0. This would be followed by Novak's fourth field goal attempt of the day in which he kicked a 32-yarder to make it 20–0. Finally, Richardson ran for his second touchdown of the game from 5 yards out (with a failed 2-point conversion) to make the final score 26–0.
With the win (their first as a franchise), the Iron started their season 1–0.
After a huge shut out win, the Iron stayed home for Week 2 against the Stallions. It was all Stallions in the first half after both teams failed to score in the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Stallions made it 6–0 when Joel Bouagnon ran for a 3-yard touchdown (with a failed 2-point conversion). They made it 9–0 at halftime when Taylor Bertolet kicked a 53-yard field goal. The Iron managed to get on the board in the third quarter when Shaheed Salmon recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown (with a failed 2-point conversion) to make it 9–6. In the fourth quarter, the Iron were able to make the comeback as Trent Richardson ran for 3-yard touchdown to make the final score 12–9.
With the win, the Iron improved to 2–0.
After the tough home win, the Iron went on the road to face the Legends. After a scoreless first quarter, the Legends scored first when Younghoe Koo kicked a 21-yard field goal to make it 3–0. The Iron tied it up when Nick Novak kicked a 39-yard field goal to make it 3–3. They moved into the lead when Trent Richardson ran for a 5-yard touchdown (with a failed 2-point conversion) to make it 9–3. The Legends however drew closer when Koo kicked a 35-yard field goal to make it 9–6 at halftime. After the break, the Iron moved back ahead by 6 when Novak kicked a 27-yard field goal to make it 12–6. They would move ahead by double digits when Richardson ran for a 1-yard touchdown to make it 20–6. In the fourth quarter, the Iron pulled further away when Richardson ran for yet another touchdown to make it 28–6. The Legends wrapped up the scoring of the game when Matt Sims found Montay Crockett on a 23-yard pass (with a failed 2-point conversion) to make the final score 28–12.
Media
In addition to league-wide television coverage through CBS, NFL Network, CBS Sports Network, TNT, and B/R Live, Birmingham's games were also broadcast on local radio by WERC (AM).