If you walked the streets of Washington DC and asked what was the area’s best professional sports team, you would probably receive an answer of the Washington Redskins. In Baltimore, it would be the Baltimore Ravens. But take away America’s love for football, and try to figure out who is the Baltimore-Washington area’s greatest franchise?
Much like comparing star athletes, trying to determine the area’s greatest team comes down to a number of factors. Championships, hall-of-fame players, and franchise value are among the key elements. Here’s a quick run down of the area’s professional sports franchises.
Washington Redskins
Three Super Bowl Championships
15 Hall of Famers
Second Most Valuable NFL Franchise
Baltimore Ravens
One Super Bowl Championship
0 Hall of Famers
11th Most Valuable NFL Franchise
Baltimore Orioles
Three World Series Titles
Five Hall of Famers
14th Most Valuable MLB Franchise
Washington Nationals
0 World Series Titles
0 Hall of Famers
10th Most Valuable MLB Franchise
Washington Wizards
1 NBA Championship
Two Hall of Famers
15th Most Valuable NBA Franchise
Washington Capitals
0 Stanley Cup Championships
Four Hall of Famers
28th Most Valuable NHL Franchise
I know, many of these numbers may be skewed due to relocation, or recent expansion. But the current economic value of a team lends itself to ingrained fan following as much as a history of talent. With that in mind, there’s no surprise that the Washington Redskins come out on top as the area’s most prominent sports franchise.
It’s one of the oldest franchises in the NFL, boasts one of the league’s biggest rivalries with the Dallas Cowboys, and had enough juice to not only be the last team to have an African-American on the roster, but is still juicy enough to utilize a racial slur for a team name. Now if that’s not greatness, I don’t know what is.
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