We all know someone.
A person in our lives who, due to our Cowboy fandom, has hit us with the absurdly stupid question that Cowboys haters love to ask.
“Are the Dallas Cowboys still America’s Team?”
The answer is yes. It’s been yes. It’s still yes. And it will always be yes. Stop asking.
How can I be so confident? I give you Exhibit A-Z, courtesy of one of the architects that helped forge the teams leading to the “America’s Team” moniker – Gil Brandt:
.@DezBryant merchandise sales was tops among all NFL players in 2016 Q1 (via @NFLPA) pic.twitter.com/B0w6m6C7Kw
— Gil Brandt (@Gil_Brandt) July 28, 2016
I don’t have words for how ridiculously absurd this is. I don’t. (But there are words below this so really I do. Just go with me.).
You might be wondering why I’m so flabbergasted by this. Consider the following:
- Dez Bryant, 1st on this list, missed 7 Games in 2015.
- Tony Romo, 2nd on this list, missed 12 Games in 2015.
- Ezekiel Elliott, 3rd on this list, has never played an NFL Game.
Think about that! These are players who were, somewhat understandably, lost and forgotten (or not present at all in Zeke’s case) during the 2015 season. In spite of that, people want the goods. People can’t get enough Dez Bryant or Tony Romo, and people are enormously excited for Ezekiel Elliott. That’s impossible to refute.
Are you not entertained?! No? Venture further down the rabbit hole then:
- Dez Bryant is entering his 7th NFL season.
- Tony Romo is entering his 14th NFL season.
- Jason Witten is entering his 14th NFL season.
What does this have to do with anything, RJ? I mean I’m with you and this is all cool, but so what?
You’re a Cowboys fan, right? Tell me that you don’t own ANYTHING related to Dez Bryant, Tony Romo, or Jason Witten. Do it. I dare you. You can’t. They’ve been around for long enough that you’re decorated in gear relevant to your favorite players.
It’s AMAZING that these guys, with significant time already in the NFL, are still selling merchandise at a high enough rate to be 60% (not counting Zeke here specifically) of the Top 5 players. The only non-Cowboy in the Top 5 is Aaron Rodgers, only a two-time MVP and Super Bowl Champion. No big deal.
Ezekiel Elliott: A Marketing Machine
Look we all know that Zeke is in a prime position to have some serious success between the endzones (and hopefully inside them) on Sundays this fall. That’s a given.
Consider when the timeframe for this data collectoin began – March 1st.
EZEKIEL ELLIOTT WAS DRAFTED ON APRIL 28TH!
That means that there are 92 days in this specific sample size, and NFL veterans were given a 58 day head start over the 2016 NFL Draft Class.
So in 34 days Ezekiel Elliott was able to bring in more sales than every NFL veteran on this list not named Dez Bryant or Tony Romo. Let’s put some dollar signs on that for proper perspective.
Say that Aaron Rodgers sold a total of $50,000 in merchandise. That seems like a fair number (really it’s just easy for my math so go with it please and thanks).
That would mean that over 92 days Aaron Rodgers averaged $543.48 in sales. Obviously Ezekiel Elliott beat him out, and did so in only 34 days, so even if he beat Aaron by one dollar that would mean Zeke averaged $1,470.62 per day!
Obviously this is just a random example, but the point of it is to illustrate exactly how absurd Ezekiel Elliott’s marketing prowess has extended across the NFL in such a short period. It’s unfathomable.
Show Me The Money
80% of the Top 5 player merchandise sales are Dallas Cowboys. That is incredible.
What’s even more astounding is that Jerry Jones has a very unique detail about his team concerning merchandise sales. Jerry Jones, unlike any other owner in the NFL, pockets 100% of merchandise sales.
The Cowboys have Dallas Cowboys Pro Shops scattered all across the state of Texas (and one in New Mexico). There is a warehouse that stores purely Dallas Cowboys product and the Cowboys even have a “home brand” of retail products called “Dallas Cowboys Merchandising.”
Sure, that certainly inflates how much money they pull in… because they have more options to do so. Don’t let folks use that as an argument against you though. It’s an insane business advantage that is indicative of a lifestyle of prestige and success that is only synonymous with one team, the most valuable sports team in the world, the Dallas Cowboys.
What Cowboys merchandise do you own? Share it with us! Comment below, Email me at RJ@RJOchoaShow.com, or Tweet to me at @rjochoa!
Fans are doing their part, now if only the team could hold up their end!
Amen to that!!! It all starts tomorrow.