NFL Most Popular Teams 2014: Broncos Are America's Favorite Team, Seahawks Most Likely To Win Super Bowl, Poll Finds

The Dallas Cowboys are no longer the NFL’s most popular team. The defending AFC champion Denver Broncos took the top spot in this year’s Harris Interactive poll, which surveyed the football preferences of 2,543 adults from Sept. 10 to 17.

The Cowboys were named the NFL’s most popular team for the last six years and hadn’t finished outside of the Harris Poll’s top-two since 2002. But in 2014, “America’s team” fell to No. 4, behind the Broncos, the New York Giants and the Green Bay Packers. The Pittsburgh Steelers were ranked fifth, while the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks came in at No. 6.

Ticket sales back up the poll’s ranking for the Broncos. Denver owns the NFL’s second-longest consecutive home sellout streak, trailing only the Washington Redskins, who were identified as the NFL’s 14^th-most popular team, ESPN notes.

On the other end of the spectrum, the Tennessee Titans tied with the Jacksonville Jaguars for the dubious distinction of being named the NFL’s least popular teams. The Jaguars have now finished dead last for the past five straight years.

Fans who took the survey said the Seahawks were the NFL team most likely to win this year’s Super Bowl, followed by the Broncos, the San Francisco 49ers and the New England Patriots. The Jaguars, Titans, Cleveland Browns, San Diego Chargers, Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers all earned less than 0.5 percent of the Super Bowl vote.

This year’s Harris Poll also provided some context on the NFL’s fan base. Fifty-five percent of respondents said they followed professional football, while 69 percent identified themselves as male. Moreover, 69 percent of men said they followed the game, compared to 43 percent of women. Millennials ranging from ages 18 to 37 constitute the NFL’s most rabid age demographic, while people over 69 were least likely to follow the league.