Sportico has released its rankings for the most valuable franchises in sports. Guess where Dallas ranks?
The entertainment world knows what a powerhouse Jerry Jones' Dallas Cowboys are off the field. This franchise is a money-making and headline-making machine, with such success in those areas that "America's Team'' is essentially insulated whenever there is a lack of on-field success.
And the critics of the process still don't get it..
In December of 2025, Forbes' "top 50 most valuable sporting franchises'' back put Dallas at No. 1. They wrote, "For the 19th straight year, Dallas is the NFL’s most valuable team, worth $13 billion, according to Forbes estimates - up 29% from 2024 and double its valuation from just four years ago.''
And now comes a new number ... a number that is driving Cowboys haters nuts.
Sportico has released its rankings for all 32 NFL teams in terms of their evaluation, and to no one's surprise, the Cowboys are at the top of the pile - and by quite a margin.
Dallas, per the publication, is valued at a whopping $15.5 billion, with the Los Angeles Rams ($12.7 billion), New York Giants ($12 billion), New England Patriots ($10.4 billion), and the New York Jets ($10.3 billion rounding out the top five.
A typical - and, to use one of Jerry's favorite words - "trite'' reaction? We go to ESPN (of course), where commentator Kyle Brandt has spoken out.
Writes Brandt on X: "DYNASTY! Plan the parade!! This is the goal.''
Hilarious. But ... trite.
I - without being a Cowboys hater - long ago identified the Jones-keyed imbalance in Cowboys priorities, coining the phrase "Sometimes, Jerry's Cowboys seem like a marketing team that plays football on the side.''
But the Brandt-like rip job is nevertheless unfair in three ways ...
1 - Even with Jerry's fingerprints being all over Dallas' marketing-first style, the Hall-of-Fame owner does have three Super Bowl trophies on his mantle.
That was a "dynasty.'' Funny how the haters skip over that part of his resume.
2 - The "30-Year Drought'' is not something the Joneses hide from. At the same time, there is nothing "wrong'' with being successful in business.
Indeed, the team Brandt seems to sort of root for is the Buffalo Bills.
The Bills are currently worth $8.13 billion (ranking 25th), according to Sportico ... and they've never won a Super Bowl.
"Dynasty!''
Seriously, why isn't Brandt/ESPN making fun of them?
3 - The rather incredible number stating that the Cowboys' evaluation is up a whopping 21 percent from 2025 (when they were at $12.8 billion) is a credit to Jerry's business leadership.
But - and here's what the critics ignore: The growth, the value, the success ... is also a credit to you.
The Cowboys love to boast about their (now ancient?) Super Bowl history, which naturally raises annual expectations around here. And yet, as these numbers show, even without championship-level success, you haven't gone away.
You keep watching. Hoping. And buying.
You're devotion to the Dallas Cowboys is the story angle that nobody will talk about. (Well, except me.)
Since 2020, when Sportico first began ranking the value of NFL teams, the Cowboys have consistently seen the arrow trend upward.
In 2020, their value was $6.43 billion; in 2021, $6.92 billion; in 2022, $7.64 billion; in 2023, $9.2 billion; and in 2024, $10.32 billion.
That's not just about them. That's also about you.
No, Jerry's not going to sell the Cowboys; I'm told, contrary to a recent news story that suggested otherwise, no, there is no plan to even sell off a piece of the franchise (to Mark Cuban or anybody else).
In seven years, the Cowboys' value has gone from $6.43 billion to $15.5 billion; why would anybody in the Jones family ever give that away?
Meanwhile, yes, I continue to emphasize - and I've said it to Jones' face - can you imagine what the dollars and the headlines would look like if Jerry's team won the Super Bowl?
(For reference, the Seattle Seahawks' value just went up 46 percent after winning the Super Bowl.)
But for now? "Dynasty''? Yes, in a way.
Because along with the Dallas Cowboys perched at No. 1 in franchise value, they are also sitting at No. 1 in fan devotion.
The commitment to them by you?
Let the haters hate. But that is the Dynasty.
And in your own way, just as much as Jerry does, you own that.
