Forbes Ranks Patriots As No. 2 Most Valuable NFL Franchise
BOSTON (CBS) -- A little controversy hasn't deflated the Patriots' value.
According to Forbes' 2015 list of most valuable teams in the NFL, the Patriots at $3.2 billion are second to just to the Dallas Cowboys, worth $4 billion. That's the same top-two as last year, when the Cowboys were worth $3.2 billion and the Patriots came in at $2.6 billion.
The Patriots and Cowboys will play each other this season in Dallas in Week 5.
The Cowboys have now claimed the top spot on Forbes' list in nine straight years. Rounding out this year's Top 5 are the Washington Redskins ($2.85 billion), New York Giants ($2.8 billion) and San Francisco 49ers ($2.7 billion).
Of course one thing those franchises don't have from 2014 is a Super Bowl title, which the Patriots claimed with a dramatic 28-24 win over the Seattle Seahawks last February.
All 32 NFL teams hit the three comma mark this season, with the Oakland Raiders ($1.43 billion) and Buffalo Bills ($1.4 billion) rounding out the bottom of the list. The Bills were second-to-last on the 2014 list, worth $935 million.
As for Forbes' most valuable sports teams overall, the Patriots place third on that list, trailing the Cowboys and Real Madrid ($3.26 billion) while sitting just ahead of the New York Yankees ($3.2 billion) and Barcelona ($3.16 billion).