With NFL teams playing in front of mostly empty stadiums last year, each team took a big revenue hit due to the pandemic, but you definitely wouldn't know that based on Forbes' latest ranking of the NFL's most valuable franchises.
According to the financial publication, the average value of each NFL team actually increased by 14% over the past year and a big reason for that is because of the $112.6 billion deal that the league just signed with its media partners in March.
Thanks to that deal, the value of each franchise has skyrocketed with the Dallas Cowboys leading the way. For the 15th consecutive year, the Cowboys are at the top of Forbes' list of the NFL's most valuable franchises. The Cowboys are worth an estimated $6.5 billion, which is $1.5 billion more than the next team on the list (New England).
Although the Cowboys haven't been to a Super Bowl in more than 25 years, that doesn't seem to be hurting the value of a team that has basically been printing money for Jerry Jones since he bought them for $140 million in 1989. According to Forbes, the Cowboys generate $800 million in revenue per year, which is the most in the NFL.
Excited for the new Cowboys season? We are too! Follow along on the CBS Sports app and get the latest insights from Patrik Walker, who's on the ground in Dallas. Plus, get the latest Dak Prescott news, Ezekiel Elliott predictions, and much more from our team of experts. If you already have the app, you need to set the Cowboys as your favorite team for up-to-the-second news and analysis.
Even though every team saw its value go up this year, no one had a bigger jump than the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. After signing Tom Brady and winning a Super Bowl, the Buccaneers jumped from being the 29th most valuable team in the NFL in 2020 ($2.28 billion) to being the 21st most valuable team in 2021 ($2.94 billion).
Here's a look at the list of the NFL's most valuable franchises. You'll notice that the Cowboys ($6.5 billion) are worth nearly $2 billion more than the two least valuable franchises -- the Bengals and Bills -- who have a combined value of $4.545 billion. You'll also notice that the most valuable division is the NFC East, which has all four of its teams ranked in the top nine.
NFL's 10 most valuable franchises
1. Dallas Cowboys ($6.5 billion)
2. New England Patriots ($5 billion)
3. New York Giants ($4.85 billion)
4. Los Angeles Rams (4.8 billion)
5. Washington Football Team ($4.2 billion)
6. San Francisco 49ers ($4.175 billion)
7. Chicago Bears ($4.075 billion)
8. New York Jets ($4.05 billion)
9. Philadelphia Eagles ($3.8 billion)
10. Denver Broncos ($3.75 billion)
Bottom five
28. Tennessee Titans ($2.625 billion)
29. Cleveland Browns ($2.6 billion)
30. Detroit Lions ($2.4 billion)
31. Cincinnati Bengals ($2.275 billion)
32. Buffalo Bills ($2.27 billion)
To see the entire list from Forbes, be sure to click here.
