Ultimate Standings 2011

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The Mag: Ultimate Standings 2011

Welcome to ESPN The Magazine's ninth-annual Ultimate Standings, in which we measure how much MLB, NBA, NFL and NHL franchises give back to the fans in exchange for all the time, money and emotion the fans invest in them.

The Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers jumped from No. 9 last year to the top spot in 2011, due in part to star quarterback Aaron Rodgers officially turning the page on the Brett Favre era at Lambeau Field. But below-average ticket prices and unmatched customer service were also a key point among fans as evidenced by the Packers finishing first in such categories as "fan friendly environment at games" and "provides an avenue for fan feedback."

The eight major categories that make up the Ultimate Standings were created based on feedback from fans about what they want most from their favorite teams (click here for a more detailed account of the method to our madness.) The categories:

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Bang For The Buck (BNG): Wins during the past three years (regular season plus postseason) per revenues directly from fans, adjusted for league schedules.

Fan Relations (FRL): Openness and consideration toward fans by players, coaches and management.

Ownership (OWN): Honesty and loyalty to core players and local community.

Affordability (AFF): Price of tickets, parking and concessions.

Stadium Experience (STX): Quality of arena and game-day promotions as well as friendliness of environment.

Players (PLA): Effort on the field and likability off it.

Coaching (CCH): Strength of on-field leadership.

Title Track (TTR): Championships already won or expected in the lifetime of current fans.

Below you will find a sortable table of this year's Ultimate Standings as well as previous results going back to 2003. Subcategories that make up the overall ranking for that category are available for the 2009-11 results. Insiders can click on team names for a more detailed breakdown of the rankings.

Financial analysis by the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon (Steve Acampa, Andrew Behl, Cally Deal, Michael DeMartini, Timothy Dobyns, Patrick Haas, Travis Hanson, Peter Raschio, Carolyne Wood and Bill Zachry). Fan surveys by Maddock Douglas and NetReflector.

Overall Ranking 2011 Select Sport Select Market

Click on table headings to sort by category.

TEAM RNK BNG FRL OWN AFF STX PLA CCH TTR 1. Green Bay Packers 141051715261 2. Tampa Bay Lightning 2 3 8 8 12 27 20 21 23 3. New Orleans Saints 3 2 7 422550135 13 4. Los Angeles Angels 4 9 14 37 1 10 28 8 19 5. San Antonio Spurs 5 27 1 2 5 26 1 2 12 6. Oklahoma City Thunder 6 12 4 23 3 62 4 27 43 7. Pittsburgh Steelers 7 8 483 4238123 4 8. Colorado Rockies 824152110782345 9. Memphis Grizzlies 9 1 49 70 13 18 26 50 93

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10. Pittsburgh Penguins 10 36 3 4 39 4 2 5 1 11. Buffalo Sabres 11 10 18 25 6 52 49 12 63 12. Texas Rangers 12 28 21 28 9 28 9 41 45 13. San Jose Sharks 13 19 11 7 47 9 33 28 52 14. Indianapolis Colts 14 21 23 19 51 16 11 87 8 15. Cincinnati Reds 15 29 27 17 11 44 21 54 39 TEAM RNK BNG FRL OWN AFF STX PLA CCH TTR 16. Orlando Magic 16 16 28 31 30 5 46 36 56 17. Detroit Red Wings 17 43 2 1 32 84 6 8 1 18. Nashville Predators 18 33 6 41 7 23 16 14 70 19. Atlanta Braves 19 30 24 45 24 55 25 58 29 20. Atlanta Falcons 207 40206092341557 21. Baltimore Ravens 21 23 44 10 59 35 18 35 24 22. Carolina Hurricanes 22 38 5 32 23 24 27 85 18 23. Anaheim Ducks 23 39 19 26 35 39 23 41 20 24. Philadelphia Phillies 24 68 9 11 40 6 7 18 4 25. Tampa Bay Rays 25 5 51 86 2 111 44 20 50 26. Chicago Bulls 26 63 12 22 62 21 2 7 25 27. Washington Capitals 27 41 13 6 74 32 24 43 51 28. Phoenix Coyotes 28 6 50 114 8 58 36 29 95 29. Dallas Mavericks 29 32 25 14 38 29 43 61 71 30. Milwaukee Brewers 30 40 33 29 4 8 38 68 78 TEAM RNK BNG FRL OWN AFF STX PLA CCH TTR 31. Portland Trail Blazers 31 50 17 46 43 17 17 25 61 32. San Francisco Giants 32 72 20 15 69 2 10 32 6 33. Arizona Diamondbacks 33 14 69 76 18 67 97 45 34 34. St. Louis Cardinals 34 103 26 43 41 15 30 34 8 35. New Orleans Hornets 35 11 46 100 15 80 45 46 97 36. Chicago Blackhawks 36 56 35 18 88 20 32 21 10 37. Houston Rockets 37 52 31 47 56 61 22 40 47 38. New England Patriots 38 49 30 44 103 56 14 1 10 39. Minnesota Twins 39 91 16 36 34 3 15 30 42 40. Boston Celtics 40 60 38 38 79 65 31 13 21 41. Philadelphia Flyers 41 55 32 12 78 59 40 15 53 42. Denver Nuggets 42 42 70 51 48 42 41 11 65 43. Vancouver Canucks 43 46 22 13 111 45 19 30 55 44. Miami Heat 44 75 29 24 80 63 29 64 31 45. Jacksonville Jaguars 45 25 63 61 16 82 73 89 74 TEAM RNK BNG FRL OWN AFF STX PLA CCH TTR 46. Dallas Stars 46 22 66 93 52 68 63 115 26 47. Kansas City Chiefs 47 45 60 35 68 30 50 53 69 48. Indiana Pacers 48 26 71 59 21 36 78 95 88 49. St. Louis Blues 49 78 47 64 28 72 62 81 89 50. New Jersey Devils 50 79 36 49 66 48 47 80 13 51. Philadelphia Eagles 51 20 80 67 90 79 51 57 73 52. Detroit Tigers 52 83 82 16 22 25 57 54 44 53. Cleveland Indians 53 15 78 109 27 46 61 75 99 54. San Diego Padres 54 17 72 99 49 41 67 44 107 55. Los Angeles Kings 55 53 39 55 70 53 42 70 77 56. Los Angeles Lakers 56 81 45 9 109 47 56 3 15 57. Chicago White Sox 57 114 37 30 58 75 37 33 21 58. Philadelphia 76ers 58 71 56 62 33 86 60 19 85 59. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 59 57 104 77 76 40 54 39 27 60. Kansas City Royals 60 47 76 104 14 12 83 72 75 TEAM RNK BNG FRL OWN AFF STX PLA CCH TTR 61. Seattle Seahawks 61 74 59 48 87 13 69 37 64

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62. Utah Jazz 62 44 54 56 50 70 87 100 94 63. Toronto Blue Jays 63 84 58 60 55 108 53 62 41 64. Colorado Avalanche 64 64 55 72 98 76 76 109 29 65. Cleveland Cavaliers 65 86 53 52 45 43 80 49 87 66. Charlotte Bobcats 66 31 90 97 29 71 100 65 106 67. Baltimore Orioles 67 69 84 90 46 11 79 17 79 68. Montreal Canadiens 68 109 34 33 106 22 64 66 34 69. Florida Marlins 69 34 96 113 31 115 74 97 28 70. Pittsburgh Pirates 70 18 102 119 20 14 102 72 112 71. Arizona Cardinals 71 59 85 95 71 60 82 37 83 72. Boston Bruins 72 51 62 71 107 87 59 84 76 73. Calgary Flames 73 94 43 40 89 101 77 77 58 74. Chicago Bears 74 61 83 58 108 93 71 79 49 75. New York Yankees 75 110 42 39 119 54 35 52 6 TEAM RNK BNG FRL OWN AFF STX PLA CCH TTR 76. New York Jets 76 54 105 53 113 95 48 10 67 77. Houston Texans 77 77 65 54 93 49 70 113 84 78. Washington Nationals 78 87 73 73 44 66 75 83 91 79. Boston Red Sox 79 120 41 27 116 37 39 24 16 80. Phoenix Suns 80 70 64 96 77 83 55 63 101 81. New York Giants 81 90 81 34 115 90 68 47 16 82. Ottawa Senators 82 88 52 50 63 85 93 117 66 83. St. Louis Rams 83 37 68 80 72 107 65 48 37 84. Oakland Athletics 84 58 79 117 26 120 58 110 54 85. New York Rangers 85 98 67 74 118 69 52 56 48 86. Denver Broncos 86 107 97 57 95 74 92 88 32 87. Columbus Blue Jackets 87 66 77 84 61 51 114 86 114 88. Houston Astros 88 101 75 85 67 57 94 93 92 89. Golden State Warriors 89 80 87 81 82 96 91 105 108 90. San Francisco 49ers 90 85 91 98 102 117 85 60 38 TEAM RNK BNG FRL OWN AFF STX PLA CCH TTR 91. Cleveland Browns 91 92 89 79 75 91 90 108 103 92. Minnesota Wild 92 97 61 69 100 19 101 119 99 93. Milwaukee Bucks 93 67 88 83 53 109 112 67 113 94. Detroit Lions 94 105 95 78 83 77 88 51 98 95. Edmonton Oilers 95 121 57 65 92 116 84 59 40 96. San Diego Chargers 96 35 110 110 104 113 86 112 80 97. Carolina Panthers 97 113 94 75 91 89 89 90 68 98. Tennessee Titans 98 76 116 87 64 99 106 104 82 99. Los Angeles Dodgers 99 93 101 108 101 97 96 76 60 100. New Jersey Nets 100 116 74 103 37 104 99 69 96 101. Miami Dolphins 101 73 108 82 97 105 104 99 90 102. Dallas Cowboys 102 111 109 66 112 34 107 71 36 103. Atlanta Hawks 103 13 114 101 86 98 120 118 118 104. Oakland Raiders 104 62 113 107 85 119 103 92 59 105. Los Angeles Clippers 105 102 98 118 65 73 72 107 105 TEAM RNK BNG FRL OWN AFF STX PLA CCH TTR 106. Minnesota Vikings 106 48 112 92 96 121 95 78 102 107. Buffalo Bills 107 99 106 106 19 106 108 94 109 108. Seattle Mariners 108 82 111 88 84 31 116 101 111 109. New York Knicks 109 117 86 91 120 64 81 96 72 110. Washington Wizards 110 89 117 68 73 103 117 106 104 111. Florida Panthers 111 100 93 115 54 94 109 120 117 112. Chicago Cubs 112 119 99 63 110 33 111 82 116 113. Detroit Pistons 113 96 120 89 57 78 121 122 33 114. New York Islanders 114 118 92 116 81 122 66 91 86

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115. Atlanta Thrashers 115 65 107 122 99 102 110 103 120 116. Toronto Raptors 116 106 100 102 105 81 113 116 115 117. New York Mets 117 104 118 105 117 88 115 97 81 118. Minnesota Timberwolves 118 115 115 111 36 114 119 121 121 119. Sacramento Kings 119 108 119 121 94 118 98 102 119 120. Toronto Maple Leafs 120 122 103 94 122 100 105 111 110 TEAM RNK BNG FRL OWN AFF STX PLA CCH TTR 121. Washington Redskins 121 112 121 112 121 112 118 74 62 122. Cincinnati Bengals 122 95 122 120 114 110 122 114 122

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jaraxsteeler any list that at any time can rank the buffalo sabres the best franchise in sports(200 or 8 i think)(and no offense meant to sabs fans) is obviously the musings of someone who doesn't understand what makes a successful franchise. although i would also put the thrashers below the bengals. at least the bengals stay where they are and win every now and then. 3 Days Ago

pe201960 me thinks this article is nothing more than a swipe at the mets. 6 Days Ago

Go Yankees2 GO GIANTS 6 Days Ago

SDSuperBolts Dumbest thing I've ever seen. All fans care about are the W's. Forget all the other junk, all that matters is how much you win. Last Week

Chad86161 GO SEAHAWKS Last Week

javezzz1

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Green Bay will always be the best place to see a game.There isn't one ego driven owner to mess things up. WE THE PEOPLE OWN THE GREEN BAY PACKERS !!!! GO PACK GO !! Last Week

diehardbengal86 Alright Bengals! Yeah! Last Week

[email protected] Go Giants! Last Week

rtcplayer85 Philadelphia kicks $@%' Last Week

jayson1621 man to think if this survey was done several years ago them bums might have been closer to the top...thank you very much mccourt! x( Last Week

JUICE8217 Im not surprised by these rankings, Green Bay is one of the only sports franchises left untouched by all the BS that seems to sworm around alot of franchises. Last Week

redraidernation36 Was anyone surprised at the ranking of the San Antonio Spurs Fan Relations (FRL) #1... probably not. What surprised me was that thier Players (PLA) held a #1 spot after sputtering in the playoffs, granted they deserve at least a top 5 spot in that category still. Last Week

gordlig Slow news day I guess. The only accurate number here is #122, all the rest is writer preference. Last Week

Pasco_2008 Oh and For the Idiots that didn't bother reading it the list just isn't based on titles. Last Week

Pasco_2008 Not that i don't mind the Lightning at number two but my question is why? Yes the new ownership Rocks and this team made a 160 turnaround and we can only go up from where we are but isn't it a little soon? Last Week

kjhand77 if the lightning has only made a 160 turn around, you're not quite there yet. Last Week

Jaredgarl LOL

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Last Week

tcganderson funny how you writers all jump on the saints bandwagon. Does pre Katrina ring a bell? All the media hated the Saints and were determined that they were moving to LA. Then Saints have a few winning seasons and now they all love them. And btw Drew Brees has just as many Superbowl wins as Trent Dilfer and Brad Johnson. Last Week

Ivann1430 Seriously.... New Orleans Saints 43 in the Ownership? They are Loyal to their core players and extremely loyal to the community. they should be a lot higher than 43. Just saying Last Week

noseman81 Stadium exp for the Vikings= 121... Stadium exp for the Twins= 3. Almost forgot how wild those Twins games get... Last Week

gibby44229 You have to remember that they dont share a stadium anymore. Both suck anyway! Go Pack! Go Brewers! Gavin Carrigan and WisconsinWallbangers like this.

Last Week

XXJASXX Just going through the different categories and found something odd. In the ownership category, the Vancouver Canucks rank dead last in Honest Ownership... at 353rd?! Last Week

noseman81 theyre like number 11 dude... Last Week

WhatsWithHughJackman 11 ? look at the list again man... In no catg. are they even better than 11th. I think you meant 43 for RANK lol... Last Week

noseman81 The "bang of the buck" and "affordability" categories are complete shams... They punish good teams in large markets whom have a high demmand for tickets. How can you sit there with a straight face and say that the Padres, Royals, and the Jacksonville Jaguars are better franchise to be a fan of than the Yankees or Red Sox??? I'm not a fan of either one, but that's ridiculous. I can't understand how the Penguins, Packers, and Red Wings all have a #1 ranking for TTR - the purpose of the list is to rank teams, not group them together; but how can they all be ahead of the Phillies and Steelers? None of those #1 teams have won 2 titles in the past 5 years, let alone 3 in the past 10!! Also, they obviously didn't account for PSL's for season tix. If they did, there's no way the Redskins would be 2nd to last. The whole reason they stay out of DC is to protect ticket holders from having to pay thousands in PSL's. Idiots this ESPN.... Last Week

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tjericks8677bang for the buck means, what is the "average fan" getting in return for the ticket. Try to be non bias with this ( i know its difficult). Affordability on the other hand, is the cost of your ticket price compared to the average ticket price. Yankee's tickets are rediculous (119 on this list). Stadium experience is ok at 54, players are at 35, and TTX is at 6. Lets compare to the #1 team on this list. You don't think the packers tickets are in high demand! I won't be able to get season tickets. Possibly my great grand children could have shot. For the price of an average ticket in GB it is actually pretty cheap compared to what you get to see. You experience a #1 stadium, #5 players, and not to mention a #1 TTX. All for the price of an average ticket. BTW, the yankees don't have a high ticket price only based off supply and demand. They have a pretty pricey organization, a very new stadium that needs to be paid for, and I dont know what property taxes are in New York, but I bet they are a lot less than at GB. Sometimes you just have to throw your hands in the air and say "it is what it is." Last Week tjericks8677 Oh and the TTX doesnt have so much to do with what they have won, but more with what they (in the mind of ESPN) will hopefully continue to do. Steelers and the Phillies are both at #4 in this area. You have nothing to $@%!$ about. The steelers got close this year, but didnt win. I think a 4 sounds about right actually. Have you ever heard of, "you'd cry if your ice cream was cold?" Last Week

[email protected] I would really just like to know how the categories were judged. How do you judge one team's openness to fans against another? How can you judge the stadium experience when it is clearly so different for everyone on any given day? Also, how do you group together the quality of the arena with the friendliness or the way players play with their likability? And overall, how do you compare completely different sports? Comparing the day to day effort of players in baseball to say football is ridiculous. 162 games vs. 16. This is list is a good idea, sort of. I would just like to see the categories better defined and black and white. Lots of gray in there. Finally Green Bay jumped from no. 9 to no. 1 this year. Why? Because they won a Superbowl? The NFL is about to have a seriously crippled season due to a lockout. How does that make them the number one team? And didn't they force Favre out? Arguably the greatest player of all-time?! That really deserves a high ranking in loyalty to core players... Last Week

tjericks8677 Finally Green Bay jumped from no. 9 to no. 1 this year. Why? Because they won a Superbowl? The NFL is about to have a seriously crippled season due to a lockout. How does that make them the number one team? And didn't they force Favre out? Arguably the greatest player of all-time?! That really deserves a high ranking in loyalty to core players... ______

You had me nodding my head right with you untill you said that. You have obviously never been to a packer game, and obviously live under a rock. Have you been around to see the last 2 years of NFL games? cus I'm pretty sure Farve had a fluke year in 2009 and a complete falling out in 2010. I'm fairly certain that the packers did what ever they could to keep farve around, including the last 4 years of his career with the packers, and having to stand by and watch him call the shots because he wouldnt let anybody know if he was comming back or not. To say that the packers as an organization was in the wrong at all lets me know you have no football knowledge at all! Also, if you happened to miss the Superbowl, the man who replaced him won it for Green Bay. I'm starting to think you just said that comment to make people mad, not because you actually had a point. There would be no other reason for it. Gavin Carrigan likes this.

Last Week

bozoj488 The Packers being # 1 should really be no suprise at all! If you have ever experienced a game at Lambeau Field, you would know why. Chris Berman is in love with the place, as is John Madden and many others. 13 World Championships will do that to you. Its the hallowed ground of the NFL. Hutson, Starr, Nitschke, Favre, Davis, Gregg, Taylor, Horning, Lombardi, Lambeau...you can go on and on. Packers played fantastic on the road in the playoffs at Philly, at Atlanta and at Chicago. It was their year! Aaron Rogers played as well as anyone ever has beating the No. 1,2,and 3 seeded teams at their place. Just tip your hat to him and move on!

Last Week

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fcdanjones I find it ironic that the Twins are 3rd where the Vikings are 2nd to last 2 Weeks Ago

aznemesis I'm assuming you mean in their own leagues, because neither of those things is true when you look at the list as a whole. 2 Weeks Ago

GoBuckz527 lol i don't care WHAT this list says...there's no place like FedEx field when the Cowgirlz play my Skinz! Talk about excitement! lolol Hail to the Redskins! noseman81 likes this.

2 Weeks Ago

Mikem.finke And theres no place like Texas Stadium when my Cowboys play your foreskinz. Gavin Carrigan and goochii373 like this.

Last Week

MagicBoltzRays Anyone hating on this list is just mad cause their team wasn't ranked higher. 2 Weeks Ago

james6169 I can't believe that the Spurs has been in the Top ten in the rankings since 03, tells you a lot about a all around great franchise. I would agree with the Packers, all they need is a establish running game, a healthy Grant can satify that need, but the Pat's are to low, they can take players from division 3 football and make them superstar. I agree with the Bungals, they are a mess. james6169 likes this.

2 Weeks Ago

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