The NFL playoffs played in January 2019, which followed the 2018 regular season, involved 12 teams. They ended at Super Bowl LIII on 3 February 2019, where the New England Patriots beat the Los Angeles Rams. Behind those 12 clubs sat two kinds of owner: families who had founded or inherited their team, and individuals who had bought one.
Seven years on, four of the 12 have changed controlling hands. Three changes came through inheritance. The fifth, at the Seattle Seahawks, was one of the largest sales in the history of American sport.
Controlling owners of the January 2019 playoff teams
| Team | Controlling owner, January 2019 | How control was acquired | Since then |
|---|---|---|---|
| New England Patriots | Robert Kraft | Bought in January 1994 for $172 million | 8% minority stake sold in 2025 at a valuation above $9 billion |
| Los Angeles Rams | Stan Kroenke | Minority stake from 1995; sole owner from 2010 | No change of control |
| Kansas City Chiefs | Hunt family, led by Clark Hunt | Founded by Lamar Hunt in 1959 | Norma Hunt's stake passed to her four children in 2023 |
| New Orleans Saints | Gayle Benson | Inherited on Tom Benson's death, March 2018 | No change of control |
| Dallas Cowboys | Jerry Jones | Bought in February 1989 for $140 million | No change of control |
| Houston Texans | Janice McNair | Inherited on Bob McNair's death, November 2018; team founded 1999 | Cal McNair named principal owner, March 2024 |
| Baltimore Ravens | Steve Bisciotti | 49% in 2000 for $275 million; the remaining 51% in 2004 for $325 million | No change of control |
| Los Angeles Chargers | Dean Spanos | Family control since Alex Spanos bought 60% in 1984 | Tom Gores bought 27% (2024); Arctos Partners 8% (2025) |
| Indianapolis Colts | Jim Irsay | Sole owner from 1997, after his father Robert, who acquired the team in 1972 | Jim Irsay died May 2025; control passed to his three daughters |
| Chicago Bears | Virginia Halas McCaskey | Inherited from her father, George Halas, in 1983 | She died in February 2025; her son George McCaskey succeeded her |
| Philadelphia Eagles | Jeffrey Lurie | Bought in May 1994 for $185 million | 8% minority stake sold in December 2024 at an $8.3 billion valuation |
| Seattle Seahawks | Estate of Paul Allen, with Jody Allen as trustee | Paul Allen bought the team for $194 million in the 1990s | Sold to the Khosla family for $9.612 billion, 2026 |
The founders and the heirs
Families that built their clubs
Three of the playoff teams were still in the hands of the families that created them. The Chicago Bears had been a Halas family club since George Halas took charge of them in 1920; his daughter, Virginia Halas McCaskey, had controlled them since his death in 1983. The Kansas City Chiefs traced back to Lamar Hunt, who founded the franchise in 1959, with his son Clark Hunt as chairman and chief executive. The Houston Texans were an expansion club, awarded to Bob McNair in 1999 for $700 million.
Inherited just before the playoffs
Two of those playoff teams had changed hands only months earlier. Tom Benson died in March 2018, and his widow Gayle Benson took over the New Orleans Saints under a succession he had arranged in 2015. Bob McNair died in November 2018, leaving the Texans to his wife Janice. The Los Angeles Chargers had likewise passed fully to Dean Spanos after his father, Alex Spanos, died in October 2018. At the Indianapolis Colts, Jim Irsay had been sole owner since 1997, having inherited the team his father Robert acquired in 1972.
The owners who bought in
The other six teams were run by owners who had bought their way in. Jerry Jones paid $140 million for the Dallas Cowboys in February 1989. Robert Kraft bought the New England Patriots for $172 million in January 1994, and Jeffrey Lurie paid $185 million for the Philadelphia Eagles four months later.
Two purchases came in stages. Steve Bisciotti bought 49% of the Baltimore Ravens from Art Modell in 2000 for $275 million, then the remaining 51% in 2004 for $325 million. Stan Kroenke first took a minority stake in the Rams in 1995 and became sole owner in 2010. At the Seattle Seahawks, Paul Allen had bought the club for $194 million in the 1990s; after his death in October 2018 it was held by his estate, with his sister Jody Allen as trustee.
Where things stand now
The Seahawks sale
The largest change came in 2026, when the Paul Allen estate sold the Seattle Seahawks to the Khosla family, led by Vinod and Neeru Khosla, for $9.612 billion. NFL owners approved the sale on 26 August 2026 and it completed in early September, with Neeru Khosla as controlling owner. Against Allen's $194 million, the price shows how far franchise values have risen.
Control passed by inheritance
Three more teams changed hands within families. Cal McNair was named principal owner of the Texans in March 2024, succeeding his mother. Virginia Halas McCaskey died in February 2025 at 102, and her son George McCaskey, the Bears' chairman since 2011, succeeded her. Jim Irsay died in May 2025, and control of the Colts passed to his three daughters, with Carlie Irsay-Gordon as chief executive. At the Chiefs, Norma Hunt's stake was divided among her four children after her death in 2023.
Minority stakes sold
Several owners sold slices without giving up control. The Eagles sold 8% in December 2024 at a valuation of $8.3 billion. Robert Kraft agreed in September 2025 to sell 8% of the Patriots, split between Dean Metropoulos and Sixth Street, at a valuation above $9 billion. At the Chargers, Tom Gores bought 27% in 2024 and Arctos Partners 8% in 2025, leaving the Spanos family with about 61%.
Jerry Jones, Stan Kroenke, Steve Bisciotti and Gayle Benson remain in control of the teams they held in January 2019.
Key facts
- Playoffs covered: January 2019, after the 2018 regular season
- Champion: New England Patriots (Super Bowl LIII, 3 February 2019)
- Teams: 12
- Changes of control since: Seahawks (sale, 2026); Texans (2024), Bears (2025), Colts (2025) by succession
- Largest transaction: Seahawks to the Khosla family, $9.612 billion (2026)
Frequently asked questions
Which season do the 2019 NFL playoffs belong to?
The playoffs played in January 2019 followed the 2018 regular season and ended with Super Bowl LIII on 3 February 2019.
Who has sold a controlling stake since then?
Only the Seattle Seahawks, sold by the Paul Allen estate to the Khosla family for $9.612 billion in 2026.
Which owners from January 2019 have died since?
Virginia Halas McCaskey of the Bears in February 2025 and Jim Irsay of the Colts in May 2025.
