When it comes to the NFL playoff season, two things are certain: The weather will be cold, and the bandwagon fans will be abundant.
Whether they’re wearing brand-new jerseys with the price tags still on them or watching their first game of the season during week 18, there are several ways to pick out a bandwagon fan.
And unlike die-hard fans who’ve stuck with their team through thick and thin all season long, bandwagon fans only seem to show up when a team is on a winning streak.
But which NFL teams have the most bandwagon fans?
In order to find out, NJ.Bet, an online casino and betting offers site, conducted a nationwide survey of NFL fans who regularly watch football and asked them their opinions on bandwagon fan behavior.
Which NFL Teams Have the Most Bandwagon Fans?
#1 Dallas Cowboys
According to survey respondents, not all NFL bandwagon fans are alike. Some fans switch allegiances from team-to-team solely because a team is playing well while others are fans of a star player rather than the team itself.
However, when it comes to the Dallas Cowboys, respondents say one of the main reasons “America’s Team” has the most bandwagon fans are due to the team’s fashionable colors and logo. In fairness, that royal blue and metallic silver does pair quite well together.
#2 New England Patriots
Let’s face it, the Patriots are a magnet for bandwagon fans.
The team has had eight Super Bowl appearances and won five championship rings within the last two decades. Not to mention, it was home to one of the most popular quarterbacks of all time during those seasons. Those ingredients make it pretty enticing for fans to hop on the Patriots bandwagon, which is why respondents ranked the team No. 2 in our survey.
#3 Kansas City Chiefs
With back-to-back Super Bowl appearances in 2020 and 2021 as well as a Super Bowl championship ring in 2020, it’s probably no surprise why so many fans feel that people have jumped on the Kansas City Chiefs bandwagon.
According to NFL fans, the Chiefs have the third-largest bandwagon following in the league. Respondents said the main reason the Chiefs attract bandwagon fans is due to the team’s star player, Patrick Mahomes.
#4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
When Tom Brady signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020, suddenly new Bucs fans started popping up left and right, which is probably why fans also ranked Brady as the No. 1 quarterback with the largest bandwagon following. Bandwagon fandom for the Bucs increased even more when Brady brought a championship ring to Tampa in 2021.
#5 Los Angeles Rams
Rounding out the top five teams with the largest bandwagon fans is the 2022 Super Bowl champions, the Los Angeles Rams. According to respondents, one of the main reasons Rams attract bandwagon fans is due to the team being in the trendy city of Los Angeles. But to be fair, the team has been welcoming a lot of new fans in recent years after the Rams relocated to the City of Angels from St. Louis in 2016.
Rounding out the top ten teams with the most bandwagon fans are the Green Bay Packers (No. 6), San Francisco 49ers (No. 7), Philadelphia Eagles (No. 8), Las Vegas Raiders (No. 9) and the Cincinnati Bengals (No. 10).
Respondents were also asked to predict which teams will gain the newest bandwagon fans during the 2023 playoff season. Overall, the top spots went to the Dallas Cowboys, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills.
Along with asking fans to rank teams with the most bandwagon fans, we also asked which team respondents support and whether they cheer for more than one team. Fan bases most likely to support multiple teams include the Detroit Lions, New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs.
Quarterbacks with the Most Bandwagon Fans
According to respondents, one of main reasons bandwagon fans switch allegiances to teams is because they gravitate toward the star players. And when it comes to the NFL, there’s no bigger star than Tom Brady who takes the No. 1 spot on our list of quarterbacks with the largest bandwagon following.
Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs ranks No. 2 followed by 2021 Most Valuable Player Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers (No. 3), Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys (No. 4) and Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals (No. 5).
NFL Bandwagon Fan Behavior
Worried you might be called out as a bandwagon fan? Overall, more than two-thirds (64%) know a bandwagon fan while 2-in-10 admit to being a bandwagon fan. Among bandwagon fans, the average length of supporting a team is two years before they throw their support to the next team.
According to respondents, there are several giveaways that someone is a bandwagon NFL fan. The biggest sign someone is a bandwagon fan is when they only support successful franchises (57%), don’t support any team until the playoffs (43%) or they give up and stop watching a game when the team is losing (34%).
Respondents also said that having more than one favorite team is a telltale sign you’re a bandwagon fan (32%) as well as not knowing more than half of the team’s players by name (27%).
If you’re trying to avoid being labeled a bandwagon fan, it’s probably best to study the players on your favorite team. According to respondents, fans should know at least eight of the team’s players by name. Fandom longevity also helps, too. Fans say 4.5 years is the average length of time someone should support a team in order to avoid being labeled a bandwagon fan.
Methodology
In December 2022, we surveyed 1,100 Americans who regularly watch the NFL in order to determine which NFL teams have the most bandwagon fans. Respondents were also asked about their opinions on bandwagon fans as well as which quarterbacks have the largest bandwagon following in the league. 50% of respondents were male, 49% were female and 1% were non-binary. The average age of respondents was 42 years old.
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