Albany Firebirds

When the Albany Firebirds open a new season on Saturday April 27th it will open with a breath of fresh air.

A legend of the Capital Region sports scene is set to be revived in the near future, as the Albany Firebirds are reportedly returning to the MVP Arena turf.

Antonio Brown, Super Bowl champion and son of Albany football legend Eddie Brown, is joining the 'family business' and joining the new Empire ownership group.

Few athletes have performed better while in Albany than Touchdown Eddie Brown. Off the gridiron, however, Brown lived a much more modest lifestyle than expected.

There is a whole extra layer of what went into creating the "FireWolves" name, one that embraces the rich indigenous history of the Capital Region and Albany.

What's the name of the newest Capital Region franchise?

Here's what we know about the return of Arena Football to the Times Union Center here in the Capital Region. We know that Head Coach Rob Keefe and Assistant Head Coach Les Moss will be back. We know the team will be part of the NAL - National Arena League. We do not know the name of the team yet but thanks to Liana Bonavita from News 10 we know when we'll know the name.

It's official we're getting Arena Football back in Albany. The group led by the owners of the Orlando Predators confirmed today that have agreed to a three-year lease with the Times Union Center. Three years speaks to the long term commitment Capital Region Football fans were hoping for. The head-scratcher for some of us was early on in the press conference when asked what the team nickname would be and the answer was they were leaning towards "Firebirds" and were still efforting to acquire the Empire name.

Ever since the Arena Football League folded due to a lawsuit against the league's former leadership, we here in the Capital Region have been holding out hope indoor football would return. News broke earlier today that Arena Football could be far closer to returning than any of us thought. Spectrum News Albany's Jaclyn Cango Tweeted out that the owners of the Orlando Predators of the National Arena League are interested in bringing a team to the Times Union Center.

Watch the exchange between ESPN personalities discussing Albany Firebirds football.

The NFL's leader in receiving yards is Pittsburgh Steelers Antonio Brown. Brown spent a stint of his childhood running around the Albany, NY area. Many of the Capital Region's own will remember him as Touchdown Eddie Brown's son, Brown played seven years for the local AFL team Albany Firebirds...