Every year Forbes releases their list of the most valuable NFL franchises. This year the top squad is the Dallas Cowboys (must not be based on playoff success) with over $500 million in total revenue in 2012. The NFC East really must be the main money machine of the NFL, as every team in the division has a spot in the top 10. Also making an appearance are the NY Jets, which also imprints on our minds that winning has zero to do with placement on this list.
You can check out the full list right after the jump.
OS REWIND: 2013 OnSMASH NFL Preview
1. Dallas Cowboys
Team value: $2,300 mil.
Revenue 2012: $539 mil.
Operating income 2012: $250.7 mil.
The Cowboys struck a 25-year stadium naming rights deal with AT&T in July for an estimated $500 million.
2. New England Patriots
Team value: $1,800 mil.
Revenue 2012: $408 mil.
Operating income 2012: $139.2 mil.
The Patriots have sold out every home game since 1994 even though their ticket prices are second-highest in the league.
3. Washington Redskins
Team value: $1,700 mil.
Revenue 2012: $381 mil.
Operating income 2012: $ 104.3 mil.
The Redskins organization is riding the momentum of two second-year players, quarterback Robert Griffin III and running back Alfred Morris.
4. New York Giants
Team value: $1,550 mil.
Revenue 2012: $338 mil.
Operating income 2012: $64.4 mil.
The Giants packed an average of 80,495 fans per game into MetLife Stadium last season, more than any team except the Cowboys.
5. Houston Texans
Team value: $1,450 mil.
Revenue 2012: $320 mil.
Operating income 2012: $81.5 mil.
Houston finished atop the AFC South with a 12-4 record in 2012, and the team’s brand has never been stronger.
6. New York Jets
Team value: $1,380 mil.
Revenue 2012: $321 mil.
Operating income 2012: $52.8 mil.
Last season the Jets filled MetLife Stadium to only 92.5% of capacity, 26th lowest out of the league’s 32 teams.
7. Phildadelphia Eagles
Team value: $1,314 mil.
Revenue 2012: $306 mil.
Operating income 2012: $47.8 mil.
The Eagles are investing $125 million in private money to renovate Lincoln Financial Field over the next two seasons.
8. Chicago Bears
Team value: $1,252 mil.
Revenue 2012: $298 mil.
Operating income 2012: $63.2 mil.
The Bears play in the smallest stadium in the NFL—capacity is just 61,500—despite being in the third-largest market in America.
9. Baltimore Ravens
Team value: $1,227 mil.
Revenue: $292 mil.
Operating income 2012: $48.3 mil.
Less than a month after being named Super Bowl MVP, quarterback Joe Flacco was rewarded with a six-year, $120.6 million contract that made him the highest-paid player in NFL history—until Aaron Rodgers signed a bigger contract the next month.
10. San Francisco 49ers
Team value: $1,224 mil.
Revenue 2012: $255 mil.
Operating income 2012: $10.2 mil.
Levi’s, a Gold Rush era titan, signed a 20-year, $220 million stadium naming rights deal for the 49ers’ new stadium.
11. Indianapolis Colts
Team value: $1,200 mil.
Revenue 2012: $276 mil.
Operating income 2012: $65 mil.
Rookie quarterback Andrew Luck led the Colts to a 11-5 record and a trip to the playoffs last season.
12. Green Bay Packers
Team value: $1,183 mil.
Revenue 2012: $282 mil.
Operating income 2012: $54.3 mil.
After leading the NFL with the highest quarterback passer rating in 2012, Aaron Rodgers signed a 5-year, $110 million contract that made him the highest-paid player in NFL history.
13. Denver Broncos
Team value: $1,161 mil.
Revenue 2012: $283 mil.
Operating income 2012: $31.7 mil.
Prior to last season the Broncos, who posted a 13-3 mark in 2012, signed four-time MVP quarterback Peyton Manning to a five-year, $96 million contract.
14. Pittsburgh Steelers
Team value: $1,118 mil.
Revenue 2012: $266 mil.
Operating income 2012: $28.3 mil.
More fans showed up to Steelers’ away games last year than any other team in the league.
15. Seattle Seahawks
Team value: $1,081 mil.
Revenue 2012: $270 mil.
Operating income 2012: $28.2 mil.
A seismic monitoring station 100 miles away from CenturyLink Field measured ground movement during a 2011 playoff game, when running back Marshawn Lynch broke nine tackles en route to a 67-yard touchdown run.
16. Miami Dolphins
Team value: $1,074 mil.
Revenue 2012: $268 mil.
Operating income 2012: $24.8 mil.
State lawmakers quashed a public referendum that would have asked voters to authorize a one-cent increase in Miami-Dade County’s hotel bed tax to fund $350 million in renovations to Sun Life Stadium.
17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Team value: $1,067 mil.
Revenue 2012: $267 mil.
Operating income 2012: $2.2 mil.
Despite rule changes that reduced the percentage of seats teams had to sell to avoid television blackouts, the Buccaneers still made it on television in their local market for just six of their eight home games.
18. Carolina Panthers
Team value: $1,057 mil.
Revenue 2012: $271 mil.
Operating income 2012: $28.9 mil.
Charlotte taxpayers are going to pay for $75 million of the $112.5 million in renovations to Bank of America Stadium.
19. Tennessee Titans
Team value: $1,055 mil.
Revenue 2012: $270 mil.
Operating income 2012: $40 mil.
After last season LP Field had a $27 million renovation which included adding two HD video boards, a new audio system and escalators to the stadium’s upper deck.
20. Kansas City Chiefs
Team value: $1,009 mil.
Revenue 2012: $245 mil.
Operating income 2012: $15 mil.
After a terrible 2012 season the Chiefs brought in longtime Philadelphia Eagles coach Any Reid to be the head coach, former Green Bay Packers executive John Dorsey to run the franchise and quarterback Alex Smith to lead the offense.
21. Minnesota Vikings
Team Value: $1,007 mil.
Revenue 2012: $234 mil.
Operating income 2012: $28 mil.
The Vikings are getting a new $975 million stadium that will be financed with $477 million from the team and NFL, $348 million from the state and $150 million from the city of Minneapolis.
22. Cleveland Browns
Team value: $1,005 mil.
Revenue 2012: $264 mil.
Operating income 2012: $17.1 mil.
Cleveland has had at least 10 losses in nine of the last 10 years.
23. New Orleans Saints
Team value: $1,004 mil.
Revenue 2012: $276 mil.
Operating income 2012: $22.2 mil.
Saints owner Tom Benson will bring in an estimated $392 million in additional revenue through 2025 thanks to one of the most complex stadium lease agreements in the NFL. Benson signed a new deal to lease the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, which is owned by the state of Louisiana, in 2009.
24. Arizona Cardinals
Team value: $961 mil.
Revenue 2012: $253 mil.
Operating income 2012: $9.7 mil.
After losing 11 of their last 12 games last season, the Cardinals fired head coach Ken Whisenhunt and replaced him with Bruce Arians, who won last season’s NFL Coach of the Year award as interim head coach of the Indianapolis Colts.
25. San Diego Chargers
Team value: $949 mil.
Revenue 2012: $250 mil.
Operating income 2012: $30.4 mil.
The San Diego Chargers failed to finish above .500 for the third straight year in 2012, and attendance has fallen in each of the last five years.
26. Atlanta Falcons
Team value: $933 mil.
Revenue 2012: $252 mil.
Operating income 2012: $18.5 mil.
The Falcons topped off an NFL-best 13-3 season with another major victory, securing an agreement with state officials for a new $1 billion, state-of-the-art stadium.
27. Cincinnati Bengals
Team value: $924 mil.
Revenue 2012: $250 mil.
Operating income 2012: $37.3 mil.
Before the 2012 season the Bengals slashed ticket prices, helping the team boost attendance 24%.
28. Detroit Lions
Team value: $900 mil.
Revenue 2012: $248 mil.
Operating loss 2012: $3.5 mil.
Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford signed a five year, $76 million contract over the summer that should keep him in Detroit through 2017.
29. St. Louis Rams
Team value: $875 mil.
Revenue 2012: $239 mil.
Operating income 2012: $21.1 mil.
Assuming they don’t first reach a new agreement with local and state officials, the Rams can break their stadium lease and leave St. Louis in March 2015 if the state fails to pay for renovations that would rank Edward Jones Dome at America’s Center in the top quartile of the NFL.
30. Buffalo Bills
Team value: $870 mil.
Revenue 2012: $256 mil.
Operating income 2012: $12.6 mil.
As part of the Bills’ new lease agreement, the state and county agreed to pay $95 million toward a $130 million renovation of Ralph Wilson Stadium, the third-oldest stadium in the NFL.
31. Jacksonville Jaguars
Team value: $840 mil.
Revenue 2012: $260 mil.
Operating income: $15.5 mil.
Despite going an NFL-worst 2-14 last season, attendance at Jaguars games reached its highest level in four years.
32. Oakland Raiders
Team value: $825 mil.
Revenue 2012: $229 mil.
Operating income 2012: $19.1 mil.
The Raiders have not had a winning season since 2002 and have cycled through seven different head coaches since then.
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