10 Things That Happen After a Team Wins a Championship

Oh, the elusive championship. Teams spend countless seasons hunting for it. Some make it to the top while others are left clamoring in the dust, looking like a character out of Mad Max.

When a franchise finally is able to nab a championship, things tend to change.

Our goal here was to analyze 10 changes that happen and explain each element in detail. Whether it's how these wins affect a city's economy or how coaches are suddenly given more slack, these changes are evident.

Securing a championship is usually a group effort. That means assistant coaches are praised after it's all said and done.

Replicating success as quickly as possible becomes commonplace for desperate franchises. Look at the Seattle Seahawks. Pete Carroll's coaching staff has already seen two defensive coordinators depart and get head coaching gigs.

Gus Bradley left for Jacksonville prior to the 'Hawks winning a title, and Dan Quinn—his replacement—became the Atlanta Falcons head coach after Seattle appeared in back-to-back Super Bowls.

Gutting championship coaching staffs is nothing new. We saw it happen with the New England Patriots. Former defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel left after the team's Super Bowl XXXIX victory in order to coach the Cleveland Browns.

It's all part of the process, folks.

Sometimes bench players transition into role players during a title run.

The Golden State Warriors saw this transpire firsthand as Andre Iguodala emerged to help lead his team to an NBA championship last season. The eventual NBA Finals MVP caught fire and became part of a masterful coaching adjustment by head coach Steve Kerr.

ESPN.com's Baxter Holmes deserves credit for his reporting on how important the Warriors' bench player became. 

This kind of stuff happens often. Unlikely heroes emerge in the name of a title, and they often stick around for a long time. One name we'll never forget who made this profound leap was former New York Yankees third baseman Scott Brosius. 

He came over in 1998 and helped the club win three World Series titles. Despite starting at third base, Brosius became a poster boy for playoff success. He's currently ranked 10th in postseason hits, according to YankeesNumbers.com.

Great things happen to those who try. Shedding the label of "bench player" is commonplace in sports.

Let's call this the "Tom Coughlin effect." After a coach wins a championship or two, he's given an extra 120 miles worth of slack. Troublesome seasons aren't nearly as serious as they should be thanks to those shiny, "DJ Khaled-looking" championship rings.

Since the Giants' second Super Bowl-winning season in 2011, Coughlin's teams have finished with a losing record twice and currently sit at 4-4 this year.

Championships tend to excuse mediocrity for an extended period of time from a coaching vantage point.

The mad scramble in order to keep a championship team's core intact is one of the quickest things to happen after the dust settles.

Take a look at the Golden State Warriors. After securing an NBA title, general manager Robert Myers had to find a way to bring forward Draymond Green back into the fold.

Rather than let Green find another home as a restricted free agent, the team was able to retain his services. A five-year, $82 million deal, per Rusty Simmons of SFGate.com, was all it took to get the band back together.

It's not easy mathematics keeping a nucleus of talent from disintegrating. Championship teams go through these woes what feels like minutes after that trophy is hoisted.

Players aren't the only recipients of extensions. Head coaches get their piece of pie as well. After winning Super Bowl XLVIII, the Seattle Seahawks extended Pete Carroll's contract.

Money well spent all in the name of winning, right?

Will we ever be able to get these bandwagon fans out of here? During a team's title run, these people come out of the woodwork, showing off their "love" for whatever squad is winning games.

Without disrespecting any of the longtime loyalists, whenever a team embraces success, that rickety old bandwagon comes bumbling down the road. Fans armed with pitchforks, Tom Brady jerseys and other items emerge.

It's expected. Winning does crazy things to people. And when a team wins a championship, those crazy ways are forced into overdrive.

You'd think the host cities of championship-winning teams would undergo a brief economic explosion. That sounds good and well, but it's not always the case, as Kavitha Davidson of the Chicago Tribune detailed.

"Study after study by sports economists continues to debunk these claims, yet every year we're inundated with ambitious estimates designed to make us go 'wow' and justify the subsidies and tax exemptions given to teams for the stadiums that might ultimately host these events," Davidson penned.

Parades and media coverage paint a picture of cash-infused dreams. Even with gratifying shards of ticker tape and glamorous floats, the money doesn't always follow suit.

You know the drill by now. Teams win a championship in professional sports and all of the sudden, the tectonic plates start to shift, sending the media into a frenzy.

Late night talk show appearances, endorsement deals and social media coverage swirl around, engulfing franchises.

It becomes a right of passage. Sports are a driving economic force and a media magnet. Media coverage that rivals a presidential election is expected these days.

Securing an endorsement deal is one of the final steps an athlete gets to take after winning a title.

Last season, Super Bowl hero Malcolm Butler seized his opportunity. The unknown New England Patriots cornerback signed with Lundy Marketing Group, as reported by Liz Mullen of SportsBusiness Daily, to explore his options.

Moves like the one Butler made are smart business decisions. Even reaching the big game can produce these types of deals. In a losing effort, Colin Kaepernick left Super Bowl XLVII with new engagements, per ESPN's Darren Rovell.

Plenty of things transpire after a title is won. Athletes landing sweet endorsement deals are just another stop on that conveyor belt of success.

Championships are the culmination of all things great. That's why all of the things we've listed prior to this slide set people up for gravitational change from an ego standpoint.

Former Los Angeles Lakers head coach Pat Riley talked about this issue with ESPN's Dan Le Batard (h/t Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald).

"When I became Mr. GQ in 1988 is when things began to change for me with my relationship with the players. You have to watch out for that when you’re a head coach. I went through a period of time from 1987 to 90 where my ego got totally out of control," Riley said.

It's only natural that this happens to some people. When you're on that pedestal, it becomes hard to stay humble and focused.

All champions come into the following season with giant targets plopped onto their backs. Because in sports, there's no better way to prove yourself as a franchise than by taking down the defending champs.

When you see the New England Patriots, Kansas City Royals, Chicago Blackhawks or Golden State Warriors, giving them everything you've got is mandatory.

For those who dare to be champions, there has to be an immense pressure to repeat success. And truth be told, it doesn't always work out. But if the 7-0 Patriots are any indication, some teams love duking it out under the spotlight.

All stats and information provided by Sports-Reference.com unless noted otherwise.