New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has won another championship, this time in retail, topping the NFLPA's Top 50 Player Sales list for Q1 of fiscal year 2016.

April 6, 2018

3 Min Read

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has won another championship, this time in retail, topping the NFLPA's Top 50 Player Sales list for Q1 of fiscal year 2016.

The list, which is released quarterly by NFL Players Inc. (the marketing and licensing arm of the NFLPA), is based on total sales of all officially licensed merchandise from March 1 through May 31, 2015.

The Super Bowl XLIX champion unseated Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks, who topped player sales on the fiscal year 2015 year-end report (Brady came in at No. 3). 

Quarterbacks dominated during FY16 Q1, which is historically the lowest quarter in terms of sales volume for licensees, with Brady, the San Francisco 49ers’ Colin Kaepernick, Wilson, the Green Bay Packers’ Aaron Rodgers and the Denver Broncos’ Peyton Manning in the top five spots.

All told the list combine overall sales of licensed products from online and traditional retail outlets as reported by more than 80 NFLPA licensees including Nike, VF Imagewear, Fanatics, Outerstuff, Fathead, McFarlane Toys, Oyo Sports, Bleacher Creatures, FBF Originals, Forever Collectibles, FanPrint and Photo File.

Additional highlights of the FY16 Q1 list include:

  • Brady outsold all players in Oyo Sports mini-figures, Forever Collectibles bobbleheads, Fatheads and Lids custom player headwear. 

  • Wilson was most popular among kids in hard lines and apparel, which includes licensees Bleacher Creatures, Outerstuff and Oyo Sports.

  • In women’s apparel, the San Francisco 49ers’ Colin Kaepernick reigned supreme with Brady, Wilson, Green Bay Packers’ Aaron Rodgers and Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt rounding out the top five.

  • Appearing for the first time on a Top 50 report was Cleveland Browns cornerback Haden and Miami Dolphins defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh.

  • Tennessee Titans’ Marcus Mariota, Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Jameis Winston and wide receiver Kevin White of the Chicago Bears were the only rookies among the FY16 Q1 top 50 best-sellers.

  • Mariota also led in collegiate co-brand hard lines which includes licensees Oyo Sports, Fanatics, Forever Collectibles, Team Beans and Team Spirit Store; a pair of surprises on the collegiate co-brand list included Washington Redskins quarterback Colt McCoy and Eagles quarterback Tim Tebow in the 10th and 11th spots, respectively. Tebow returns to the Top 50 report for the first time since 2012.

  • Joe Thomas of the Browns was the first offensive lineman to appear on the report since the NFLPA began compiling in 2012.

  • The New York Giants' Odell Beckham jumped from the NFLPA Rising 50 list, which projects future top sellers of licensed merchandise, into eighth place on the overall Q1 list. Other Rising 50 players who moved from prospects to emerging retail stars included Raiders linebacker Khalil Mack, Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman Bears wide receiver Alshon Jeffery, Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles and 49ers running back Carlos Hyde.

NFLPA Top 50 Player Sales Rankings–FY16 Q1 (March 1-May 31, 2015):

  1. Tom Brady, New England Patriots 

  2. Colin Kaepernick, San Francisco 49ers 

  3. Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks 

  4. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers 

  5. Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos 

  6. J.J. Watt, Houston Texans 

  7. Richard Sherman, Seattle Seahawks 

  8. Odell Beckham, Jr., New York Giants 

  9. Marcus Mariota, Tennessee Titans 

  10. Jameis Winston, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

  11. DeMarco Murray, Philadelphia Eagles 

  12. Jimmy Graham, Seattle Seahawks 

  13. Joe Haden, Cleveland Browns 

  14. Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots 

  15. LeSean McCoy, Buffalo Bills 

  16. Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts 

  17. Jordy Nelson, Green Bay Packers 

  18. Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys 

  19. Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers 

  20. Navorro Bowman, San Francisco 49ers 

  21. Darrelle Revis, New York Jets 

  22. Ndamukong Suh, Miami Dolphins 

  23. Brandon Marshall, New York Jets 

  24. Marshawn Lynch, Seattle Seahawks 

  25. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints 

  26. Khalil Mack, Oakland Raiders 

  27. Johnny Manziel, Cleveland Browns

  28. Earl Thomas, Seattle Seahawks 

  29. Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers 

  30. Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders 

  31. Tim Tebow, Philadelphia Eagles 

  32. Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys 

  33. Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions 

  34. Sammy Watkins, Buffalo Bills

  35. Julian Edelman, New England Patriots 

  36. Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys 

  37. Eddie Lacy, Green Bay Packers 

  38. Alshon Jeffery, Chicago Bears 

  39. Patrick Willis, San Francisco 49ers*

  40. Luke Kuechly, Carolina Panthers 

  41. Teddy Bridgewater, Minnesota Vikings 

  42. Kam Chancellor, Seattle Seahawks 

  43. Blake Bortles, Jacksonville Jaguars 

  44. Ryan Tannehill, Miami Dolphins 

  45. Joe Thomas, Cleveland Browns 

  46. Kevin White, Chicago Bears 

  47. Eric Reid, San Francisco 49ers 

  48. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers 

  49. Carlos Hyde, San Francisco 49ers 

  50. Demaryius Thomas, Denver Broncos 

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