Study ranks the most loyal NFL fan bases with in-depth analytics

Jan 07, 2012; Houston, TX, USA; Fans cheer during the third quarter of the 2011 AFC wild card playoff game between the Houston Texans and the Cincinnati Bengals at Reliant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports /

It’s a common quote from players and coaches around the NFL – ‘we have the best fans in the league’.

Every fan base is the best in the league, at least according to members of a respective franchise. But really, who is the best fan base in the NFL?

It’s a question that’s never really had a true answer, outside of some polls on ESPN which factor in a bunch of odd (and relatively pointless) statistics but two students from Emory University’s Sports Marketing Analytics program in Atlanta think they’ve come up with a concrete answer.

I’d try to explain how they arrived at the conclusions they did, but frankly, unless you feel like being extremely confused, I’ll let them do so.

Per Emory Sports Marketing Analytics program:

"In our series of fan base analyses across leagues, we adjust for these complicating factors using a revenue premium model of fan equity. The key idea is that we look at team box office revenues relative to team on-field success, market population, stadium capacity, median income and other factors. The first step in our procedure involves the creation of a statistical model that predicts box office revenue as a function of the aforementioned variables. We then compare actual revenues to the revenues predicted by the model. Teams with relatively stronger fan support will have revenues that exceed the predicted values, and teams that under perform have relatively less supportive fan bases. We provide more details on the method here and here."

So, who came in as the top NFL fans? America’s team, of course.

Here is the full listing:

1. Dallas Cowboys

2. New England Patriots

3. New York Jets

4. New Orleans Saints

5. New York Giants

6. Indianapolis Colts

7. Chicago Bears

8. Baltimore Ravens

9. Pittsburgh Steelers

10. Tennessee Titans

11. San Diego Chargers

12. Denver Broncos

13. Washington Redskins

14. Green Bay Packers

15. Carolina Panthers

16. Houston Texans

17. Philadelphia Eagles

18. Minnesota Vikings

19. Cincinnati Bengals

20. Cleveland Browns

21. Kansas City Chiefs

22. St. Louis Rams

23. Seattle Seahawks

24. Buffalo Bills

25. Miami Dolphins

26. San Francisco 49ers

27. Jacksonville Jaguars

28. Detroit Lions

29. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

30. Arizona Cardinals

31. Atlanta Falcons

32. Oakland Raiders

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