Ranking the NFL Owners, Part II
This is the continuation of a ranking of owners based on their team accomplishments on the field since they became owners. Part I, ranking the first 15 owners, ran yesterday. Part II continues today with the last 15 owners, and these rankings are based on a combination of regular season records and post season accomplishments under each owner.
16. Dean Spanos, San Diego Chargers. Spanos took over for his father and has largely presided over a solid but sometimes disappointing era. He has stuck with GM A.J. Smith and coach Norv Turner after consecutive disappointing seasons when the team was viewed as a Super Bowl contender and failed to make the playoffs (18 seasons, 51.0% win percentage, 1 Super Bowl Appearance, 28% of seasons in Final Eight).
17. Tom Benson, New Orleans Saints. Tom Benson is not always viewed favorably, though after flirting with relocation, he stayed in New Orleans, and the team has had a golden era until the recent off field issues. You might be surprised to know that the Saints have a winning record under Benson’s ownership, and had never made a playoff appearance or a winning season before he bought the team. It could be worse, Saints fans. (27 seasons, 51.3% win percentage, 1 Super Bowl Appearance, 15% of seasons in Final Eight).
18. Woody Johnson, New York Jets. Woody Johnson loves to challenge the Giants in the headlines and go after big stories. The Jets are never boring, we can say that much. The win percentage and playoff results puts him squarely in the middle of the pack, though. (13 seasons, 51.4% win percentage, 0 Super Bowl Appearances, 31% of seasons in Final Eight).
19. Jerry Richardson, Carolina Panthers. Richardson, the original owner of the Panthers when they entered the league, is a former player, and he still has a competitive streak as evidenced by last year’s negotiations during the lockout. (17 seasons, 46.0% win percentage, 1 Super Bowl Appearance, 31% of seasons in Final Eight).
20. Malcolm Glazer and the Glazer Family, Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The owners of Manchester United bought the team and hired Tony Dungy, a positive, and the Bucs enjoyed a period of success culminating in a Super Bowl. In recent years, they have spent less than most teams and been very young, and the results have shown on the field. (17 seasons, 49.6% win percentage, 1 Super Bowl Appearance, 18% of seasons in Final Eight).
21. Bob McNair, Houston Texans. Bob McNair gets a slight adjustment because of the expansion factor, and under a similar analysis based on owner record would fare better in the future. Still, the Texans took longer than all but two expansion teams since 1961 to reach the post-season, even with more slots available. Discounting the first two seasons of the expansion franchise, he falls here. (10 seasons, 40.4% win percentage, 0 Super Bowl Appearance, 10% of seasons in Final Eight).
22. Zygi Wilf, Minnesota Vikings. Wilf finally got what he wanted in Minnesota in a new stadium after much wrangling and posturing. On the field, the Vikings have been largely a middling franchise, save for a run to the championship game in Brett Favre’s first year. (7 seasons, 48.2% win percentage, 0 Super Bowl Appearances, 14% of seasons in Final Eight).
23. Stan Kroenke, St. Louis Rams. Kroenke owns not only the Rams but also several other sports franchises including the Nuggets, though he recently “re-organized” ownership to his son Josh because of a rule against owning franchises in multiple cities in other sports. His Rams had a brief period of revival and reached two Super Bowls with the Greatest Show on Turf, but the past decade has been dreadful. I’m including the period where he was a part-owner as well, though since he became the majority owner things have been worse. (17 seasons, 42.3% win percentage, 2 Super Bowl Appearances, 24% of seasons in Final Eight).
24. Bill Bidwill, Arizona Cardinals. Bidwill’s standing has improved in recent years with the opening of the University of Phoenix Stadium and the Cardinals’ competitive stretch with Kurt Warner at quarterback. He still ranks lowest on this list among owners who have had a team reach the Super Bowl because of all the bad years before, and he’s been the one in charge for a while. (40 seasons, 41.0% win percentage, 1 Super Bowl Appearance, 13% of seasons in Final Eight).
25. Stephen Ross, Miami Dolphins. Stephen Ross has had some public relations issues, from the botched Harbaugh hiring that led to extending Sparano, only to fire his head coach a half season later. He seems willing to spend big bucks, but not necessarily sure how to spend it. In year five, he hopes the turn to Packers offshoot Joe Philbin pays dividends. (4 seasons, 48.0% win percentage, 0 Super Bowl Appearances, 0% of seasons in Final Eight)
26. Daniel Snyder, Washington Redskins. Based on personality and popularity, Snyder would probably rank lower. He’s low enough as it is based on the team performance since he took over, which has often led to offseason titles and regular season disappointment. (13 seasons, 43.8% win percentage, 0 Super Bowl Appearances, 15% of seasons in Final Eight).
27. William Clay Ford, Sr., Detroit Lions. Last year was great for the Lions. The previous 49 with the senior Ford in official ownership position, not so much with very few exceptions, and it’s hard to get the taste of the Matt Millen era out. The Lions were one of the feared franchises of the Fifties and early Sixties, but it’s been a while. The good news is that the team looks up as his role diminishes with age. (50 seasons, 42.4% win percentage, 0 Super Bowl Appearances, 6% of seasons in Final Eight).
28. Clark Hunt, Kansas City Chiefs. Clark Hunt still has plenty of time to improve his standing, but the first few years of the younger Hunt’s official ownership were some tough times. He made the decision to terminate Carl Peterson at GM and went and got Scott Pilot. (6 seasons, 37.5% win percentage, 0 Super Bowl Appearances, 0% of seasons in Final Eight).
29. Mike Brown, Cincinnati Bengals. Mike Brown is getting lots of love this year for the draft, and last year for the trade. Maybe this ranking should look different in a few years. Still, it’s hard to overlook the unprecedented lack of success in Cincinnati since Brown took over for his father. Since 1991, the Bengals have gone through some horrible stretches, and have never appeared in a Divisional Round with Mike Brown as owner. (21 seasons, 37.5% win percentage, 0 Super Bowl Appearances, 0% of seasons in Final Eight).
32. Randy Lerner, Cleveland Browns. Lerner, who took over the new Browns after his father’s death in 2002, hasn’t exactly been a success in the NFL to date. At least he also owns Aston Villa in the English Premier League as well. Cleveland’s only playoff appearance was in that first season. Lerner’s franchise has the lowest winning percentage of any active owner, excluding the two that just moved into the position. (10 seasons, 35.0% win percentage, 0 Super Bowl Appearances, 0% of seasons in Final Eight).
[photos via US Presswire and Getty]

- LeBron James and Paul George Slapped Hands After Exchanging Spectacular Baskets to End the 3rd Quarter [Video]
- Paul George’s Vicious Dunk on Birdman Was Not Rated PG [Video]
- Matt Harvey, the New York Mets’ Star Pitcher, is Dating SI Swimsuit Model Anne V
- The Kansas City Royals Are Becoming the Royals Again, and Fans Have Been Far Too Patient
- Champions League: Bayern Munich a Legacy of Losing at Stake

- kaiserwilhelmreems is commenting too quickly on LeBron James and Paul George Slapped Hands After Exchanging Spectacular Baskets to End the 3rd Quarter [Video]
- Billy Buckner on LeBron James and Paul George Slapped Hands After Exchanging Spectacular Baskets to End the 3rd Quarter [Video]
- Chief on LeBron James and Paul George Slapped Hands After Exchanging Spectacular Baskets to End the 3rd Quarter [Video]
- A.P. on Matt Harvey, the New York Mets' Star Pitcher, is Dating SI Swimsuit Model Anne V
- jdeeser5 on Matt Harvey, the New York Mets' Star Pitcher, is Dating SI Swimsuit Model Anne V
44 Responses to “Ranking the NFL Owners, Part II”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.






May 16th, 2012 at 4:32 PM
Randy Lerner is too high on this list.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:33 PM
There should be a tie for 32nd.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:34 PM
a 10-way tie for 32 was the only reasonable solution
May 16th, 2012 at 4:34 PM
Scott Pilot
May 16th, 2012 at 4:34 PM
Scott Pilot!
May 16th, 2012 at 4:35 PM
An impressive chili bowl in the Zygi pic
May 16th, 2012 at 4:35 PM
No 30 or 31?
Assuming Shad Khan would get an incomplete anyway.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:35 PM
Any reason you skipped 30 and 31?
May 16th, 2012 at 4:35 PM
i just want to run by woody johnson and take that stupid hat of his
May 16th, 2012 at 4:36 PM
I’d probably put Brown below Lerner just based on the numbers. Twice as many seasons, similar win percentage, equally shitty postseason results. Either way, fuck them both.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:37 PM
Lisk must be breaking all sorts of rules by posting something with that many words and only one link back to a previous TBL post.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:38 PM
Khan and Davis are new owners. He mentioned this in Part One.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:39 PM
Khan is happy with no.1 on owner mustache list
May 16th, 2012 at 4:39 PM
Clay Ford is too high. He’s a fucking scumbag.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:40 PM
Which makes this even funnier:
May 16th, 2012 at 4:41 PM
If Scott is your Co-Pilot, Switch…uh…wait.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:41 PM
I’m biased, but I think McNair will prove to be a very good owner over time. He made a couple of mistakes out of the gate in hiring Casserly and Capers. He appears to be more than patient given how he has handled Kubiak and it looks like Rick Smith may know what he’s doing with these past few drafts and last year’s free agent signings.
McNair should move up this list going forward.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:43 PM
i agree. It may have taken the Texans longer than other expansion teams, however, this team looks like it will have a brighter future than the previous expansion teams.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:49 PM
Lerner’s teams are a combined bunch of suck.
And Scott Pilot? Nice!
May 16th, 2012 at 4:51 PM
Aston Villa fans fucking hate Lerner as well.
What a guy.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:51 PM
So badass. Deadspin doin’ work.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:52 PM
Bottom line, odds are against you if your owner inherited the team:
Art Rooney
Mara & Tisch
Irsay
York
McCaskeys
Spanos
Bidwell
Ford
Brown
Lerner
1 proven good, 3 jury still out, a few middlings and a number of bombs.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:55 PM
Khan and Davis are new owners. He mentioned this in Part One.
Thanks.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:55 PM
Who is this Bill Bidwell character and what has he done with Bill Bidwill?
May 16th, 2012 at 4:55 PM
why do villa fans hate lerner? just curious I dont follow that league much outside the big headlines.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:57 PM
i agree. It may have taken the Texans longer than other expansion teams, however, this team looks like it will have a brighter future than the previous expansion teams.
I agree. Based on the metric that Lisk used, the position of where McNair is makes sense. McNair seems willing to let this football personnel run things (i.e. he’s not a meddler), but so did William Clay Ford Sr. with Matt Millen. So that’s not necessarily a positive. But if Lisk were to redo this list in 10 years, I’d wager that McNair (if he still owns the team) will be quite a bit higher.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:58 PM
Variety of reasons but a big one is the fact that last summer they hired the manager of their biggest rival who had just gotten them relegated. So basically it would be like Duke hiring Roy Williams if Roy Williams destroyed UNC’s basketball program.
He just makes bad decisions.
May 16th, 2012 at 4:58 PM
Aston Villa fans fucking hate Lerner as well.
As much as United fans hate the Glazers?
May 16th, 2012 at 5:00 PM
Not yet.
May 16th, 2012 at 5:01 PM
Cleveland’s only playoff appearance was in that first season.
Kelly Holcombe, we hardly knew ye
May 16th, 2012 at 5:03 PM
well, it’s too bad that Millen will likely hold back that ranking in the future (i know, the owners weep over their ranking in a blog article) because if they stay hands off they can continue to do well with this team.
May 16th, 2012 at 5:06 PM
Lawrie gets 4 games and a fine. Ump gets ridicule and beer bib
May 16th, 2012 at 5:06 PM
“Khan is happy with no.1 on owner mustache list”
How dare thee defile Arthur Blank’s classier and more demure model stache?!
May 16th, 2012 at 5:07 PM
they need to do some work on that website. that thing is fucking awful.
May 16th, 2012 at 5:09 PM
Damn, I got major goosebumps watching that video, that was great.
May 16th, 2012 at 5:12 PM
Bidwell: [returns to camp after a bear has bit off his leg] Sir, I’ve been to hell and back.
Edwards: Yes, I can see that…
Bidwell: I suspect that you’ll want to lead a hunting party to slay that terrible beast.
Edwards: Well, yes, that thought did cross my mind briefly. But now I have a better idea.
Bidwell: Yes, sir?
Edwards: I shall fashion for you the finest wooden leg you’ve ever seen.
Bidwell: But what about the bear?
Edwards: Rest assured, Bidwell, in 20 years or so, the ravages of old age will deal with the bear far more cruelly than we ever could have.
Bidwell: Revenge is sweet, sir.
May 16th, 2012 at 5:12 PM
A year ago the fans’ collective attitude was much different than it is now. Villa had some success when Lerner first took over and was letting Martin O’Neill throw a bunch of money around. Then he tightened the purse strings and hired McLeish, and shit went downhill fast. But he basically admitted his mistake by firing McLeish the other day, so he has that going for him. Also, their season tickets are among the cheapest in the league (especially relative to their position in the table for the last five years or so) and he’s spending his own money on the team rather than taking on massive amounts of bank debt, which makes a big difference. Means that if Villa go under, so does he.
May 16th, 2012 at 5:12 PM
yep.
May 16th, 2012 at 5:16 PM
What do you guys ask of your team’s owner? I ask mine to (not be cheap) and hire respected NFL guys.
May 16th, 2012 at 5:22 PM
To have a succession plan in place so the Broncos don’t get moved to Branson by the Plastic Surgery Disaster called Anabel Bowlen.
May 16th, 2012 at 5:23 PM
#1 for me is make sure there’s a plan in place, and have everyone in the organization stick with it (and then let the football guys make the football decisions). I’m spoiled as a Patriots fan because (and this was a lot more evident when BB was in charge and they lucked into Brady) they had a plan and an organizational philosophy.
Kraft gives BB support, BB does what he wants. The Patriots don’t overpay to keep stars, they build their team from 20-53 through FA/draft, and let starters appear on their own. I’ll be interested to see if the Welker signing and 1st round picks this year backfire as a change in MO.
The Red Sox got into a pattern where they valued prospects and picks, but at the same time wanted to chase big-name talent, and ended up paying for underperforming players and sacrificing prospects to do so.
May 16th, 2012 at 5:25 PM
In short though… I watched Jeff Fisher blow too many inexplicable games in TN, and make short-term decisions that didn’t show a commitment to winning+team > any one player, so I’m sensitive to a team with a shitty FO.
Find a GM/coach who does that, give them the security and autonomy to operate, and have a cute family in the press box on TV during playoff games. That’s it.
May 16th, 2012 at 8:44 PM
Villa almost got relegated too. At least they fired McCleish but still.
May 17th, 2012 at 11:52 AM
WHOOO!!!!!!!!!!! WE WON THE SHITTIEST OWNER AWARD!!!!!! YEEEHAW!!!