It’s time to settle this once and for all. We explored the data to determine the teams and players that can truly lay claim to the title of the NFL’s most popular.
Since when did we simply accept that the Dallas Cowboys are “America’s Team?” Was there an election? Did they sell the most magazine subscriptions or baked goods? Was there bribery involved? Well, as the story goes, the phrase made its way into an NFL Films highlight from the team’s 1978 season — one in which they didn’t even win the Super Bowl — and has managed to stick ever since.
If you were asking how a team that hasn’t won the big one in nearly three decades could still justify holding such an honorific, however, look no further than their massive, global economic footprint, or their redoubtable reach across any and all digital platforms.
Does that mean Jerry Jones’s bunch is the undisputed most popular NFL team in the land, bar none?
There’s no unified metric for measuring this, but Boardroom called upon a couple of sources in an effort to try.
Using data from Google and market research firm YouGov, we’re here to discover the most popular NFL teams and most popular NFL players in all the land.
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Most Popular NFL Teams by Google Search
Based on Google search data from 2017 through 2022.
| RANK | TEAM |
| 1 | Dallas Cowboys |
| 2 | New England Patriots |
| 3 | Green Bay Packers |
| 4 | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 5 | Philadelphia Eagles |
| 6 | Kansas City Chiefs |
| 7 | San Francisco 49ers |
| 8 | Chicago Bears |
| 9 | Las Vegas Raiders |
| 10 | Cleveland Browns |
Most Popular NFL Teams by Fan Survey Results
Based on percentage of YouGov survey respondents who reported overall positive opinions of a given team as of Q3 2023.
| RANK | TEAM |
| 1 | Green Bay Packers |
| 2 | Philadelphia Eagles |
| 3 | Kansas City Chiefs |
| 4 | New York Giants |
| 5 | New Orleans Saints |
| 6 | Seattle Seahawks |
| 7 | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 8 | Dallas Cowboys |
| 9 | Chicago Bears |
| 10 | Denver Broncos |
Top 10 Most Popular NFL Players
Based on percentage of YouGov survey respondents who reported overall positive opinions of a given player as of Q3 2023. Includes both active and retired athletes.
| RANK | PLAYER | TEAM |
| 1 | QB Tom Brady | Retired |
| 2 | QB Patrick Mahomes | Chiefs |
| 3 | TE Rob Gronkowski | Retired |
| 4 | QB Lamar Jackson | Ravens |
| 5 | QB Aaron Rodgers | Jets |
| 6 | EDGE JJ Watt | Retired |
| 7 | QB Ben Roethlisberger | Retired |
| 8 | QB Cam Newton | Free agent |
| 9 | TE Travis Kelce | Chiefs |
| 10 | QB Russell Wilson | Broncos |
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