Profit Over Production: Jets Surprisingly Soar Among World's Most Valuable Franchises
Leave it to the New York Jets to find a way to sit behind the New England Patriots even when they supposedly win.
The Jets were one of the NFL's major winners in Sportico's annual ranking of the most valuable teams in professional sports over the year of 2023, rounding out the top 10 two spots behind their AFC East rivals. Under the ownership of Woody Johnson, New York is currently appraised at over $6.1 billion on the list unveiled earlier this week, the sixth-best rate on a list dominated by NFL teams.
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Jerry Jones' Dallas Cowboys lead the way followed by the Jets' blue MetLife Stadium roommates in the runner-up spot ahead of the Los Angeles Rams. New England comes in fourth among gridiron dwellers, separated from the Jets by the San Francisco 49ers. Several financial factors were considered in the tally, including total value, team value, team-related businesses, and real estate holdings.
Though the Jets endured a 13th consecutive year bereft of an NFL playoff berth, the team did enjoy an uptick in popularity in a rollercoaster calendar year. The year was, of course, defined by the arrival ... and subsequent immediate exit ... of quarterback Aaron Rodgers, one that cast an even greater green spotlight upon New York's affairs. Daily tracking of the polarizing ex-Green Bay Packer reached the attention of HBO's training camp docudrama series "Hard Knocks," which took in the team's summer prep from Florham Park in its latest preseason edition.
The Jets' current roster also lends itself to high value and potential investment, as the team is packed to the brim with young stars such as Sauce Gardner, Breece Hall, and Garrett Wilson. New York perhaps also enjoyed a financial boon thanks to the well-received return of their throwback uniforms inspired by the endeavors of the "New York Sack Exchange" from the 1980s, which are set to become their full-time aesthetic come next season.
Sportico's latest list perhaps continued to fortify the stranglehold that the NFL has on the modern sports fan's imagination, as each of the league's 32 teams appeared among the top 51 (that portion rounded by the Jacksonville Jaguars).
