Also on the newsstands, and it was highlighted in the national sports media headlines this past mid-week, is the latest copy of ESPN — The Magazine. This double issue ranks 122 professional sports franchises in several categories, and guess who is ranked on top? You guessed it — your very own Green Bay Packers!
The rankings were based on the following: Bang for the Buck (Wins during the past three years [regular season plus postseason] per revenues directly from fans, adjusted for league schedules); Fan Relations (Openness and consideration toward fans by players, coaches and management); Ownership (Honesty and loyalty to core players and local community); Affordability (Price of tickets, parking and concessions); Stadium Experience (Quality of arena and game-day promotions as well as friendliness of environment); Players (Effort on the field and likability off it); Coaching (Strength of on-field leadership); Title Track (Championships already won or expected in the lifetime of current fans).
There has been no action on the practice fields this offseason, but the Packers have still added another “championship” to go along with their Super Bowl XLV title.
To read the whole article on the Packers being the best franchise, click here.
To see the complete list of rankings, click here.
And where do our N.F.C. North Division rivals rank?
Chicago Bears — 74th
Detroit Lions — 94th
Minnesota Vikings — 106th
(Rank of 122 total)