TV Raings down but NFL is still strong programming.
Wednesday’s Hollywood Reporter had a screaming headline about the NFL and it was not good. NFL TV Ratings Slide Worries Wall Street. The Wall Street guys are worried that the falling ratings it will not only will impact advertising sales but the actual value of the stock of NFL partners Comcast, Disney, CBS and 21st Century FOX. The ratings have not been as robust for the NFL product as in the not too long ago past. NFL TV ratings dropped eight percent in 2016 from 2015 levels and so far, the first two weeks are off although some of the first week’s viewership woes could be tied to Hurricane Irma hitting Florida. It is hard to get a handle on the ratings. One Sunday game featuring Dallas had a better week two rating in 2017 than 2016. The second Monday Night Football game of the year earlier this week had better numbers than the 2016 second game.
The NFL is doing quite well compared to other programming. Some say NFL player protests during the National Anthem has been a factor in ratings decline with some people irate that an NFL player could even think about a protest, after all the players are there to entertain not send political messages. That disrupts people feeling good about a game that features violent hitting on the field which seemingly leads to brain damage in players after their careers end. There are other aspects of the viewing experience that are interrupted by players who are not robotically performing, that viewing experience includes betting, eating, drinking and tribalism with people rooting for a uniform and not knowing why they are rooting for a piece of dirty laundry. The other problem the NFL might have with some fans. Uprooting three teams in 18 months with two of those teams now in Los Angeles and one going to Las Vegas. All in all, football is doing fine.
The NFL Thursday Night Football Deal Ends In 2017
