NFL Attendance and Ratings

[Xville]

So, I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I have heard numerous times already this year that attendance and tv ratings are down across the NFL this season, while College Football is actually up. This has made me to start questioning why? Just wanted to see what other people on here thought. Here are some options that I thought of:

1.) The NFL product has started to suck both at games as well as on tv. Especially at games, I think its actually pretty painful. There are countless stoppages in play, huddles etc etc etc..The gameplay itself is actually pretty boring...the offenses and defenses are pretty simliar, where in college, there is a lot more innovation and interesting looks from different teams.

2.) Kaepernick having an effect?

3.) Matchups...have been great thru the first few weeks of the college season, matchups in the NFL have been pretty meh especially on Sunday and Monday nights when eyeballs should all be on one game.

Anything else that people can think of? Honestly, I'd be a huge fan of the NFL failing, (mostly because owners like Jerry Jones and Stan Kroenke are the absolute scum of the earth....they make politicans looks good.) ...I don't see that happening, but it would be nice if their numbers continue to dwindle, and they aren't the behemoth they had been the past 10 or so years.

[fellahmuskie]

There is a reasonably large #BoycottNFL movement out there in response to Kaepernick and others.

The election has also boosted cable news ratings. That could be a factor though it's interesting that college football is up.

Personally, I think the ratings drop will feed on itself. People hear that ratings are down...suddenly the NFL isn't as cool anymore. Sunday afternoon ratings have been pretty steady, but Thursday, Sunday, and Monday night are all taking big hits. After 5-10 years of solid NFL addiction, it's nice to be able to do something else on Sunday evening...

I also hope the numbers go down. I don't watch the NFL, but I love the NBA, and I would love to see the ratings even out a little more.

In time, I think we will see basketball and soccer climb and football drop. I don't know how it will shake out exactly, but I wouldn't be surprised if we end up with 3 major sports in 15-20 years (with baseball continuing to slowly decline).

[Juice]

There is a reasonably large #BoycottNFL movement out there in response to Kaepernick and others.

The election has also boosted cable news ratings. That could be a factor though it's interesting that college football is up.

Personally, I think the ratings drop will feed on itself. People hear that ratings are down...suddenly the NFL isn't as cool anymore. Sunday afternoon ratings have been pretty steady, but Thursday, Sunday, and Monday night are all taking big hits. After 5-10 years of solid NFL addiction, it's nice to be able to do something else on Sunday evening...

I also hope the numbers go down. I don't watch the NFL, but I love the NBA, and I would love to see the ratings even out a little more.

In time, I think we will see basketball and soccer climb and football drop. I don't know how it will shake out exactly, but I wouldn't be surprised if we end up with 3 major sports in 15-20 years (with baseball continuing to slowly decline).

Baseball is consumed much differently now than it was decades ago and it's certainly second to football. But baseball has been generating record revenue each year. And attendance was rising each year for the past 5 years until this year. Attendance dropped a whopping 184 people per game this year.


Baseball isn't dead -- yet. Sure, there are threats, and the cable network bubble bursting in the next five to 10 years is by far the most problematic. But when October rolls around and playoff TV ratings are down again, remind yourself of one number: $9 billion. That's the record revenue last year for MLB, a $2 billion increase in just the past four years, according to Forbes. (For context, the NFL hit about $11 billion last year, NBA about $5 billion and NHL $3.7B.)

[JTG]

So, I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I have heard numerous times already this year that attendance and tv ratings are down across the NFL this season, while College Football is actually up. This has made me to start questioning why? Just wanted to see what other people on here thought. Here are some options that I thought of:

1.) The NFL product has started to suck both at games as well as on tv. Especially at games, I think its actually pretty painful. There are countless stoppages in play, huddles etc etc etc..The gameplay itself is actually pretty boring...the offenses and defenses are pretty simliar, where in college, there is a lot more innovation and interesting looks from different teams.

2.) Kaepernick having an effect?

3.) Matchups...have been great thru the first few weeks of the college season, matchups in the NFL have been pretty meh especially on Sunday and Monday nights when eyeballs should all be on one game.

Anything else that people can think of? Honestly, I'd be a huge fan of the NFL failing, (mostly because owners like Jerry Jones and Stan Kroenke are the absolute scum of the earth....they make politicans looks good.) ...I don't see that happening, but it would be nice if their numbers continue to dwindle, and they aren't the behemoth they had been the past 10 or so years.
1. The officiating sucks, it's approaching NBA bad
PLUS Sunday nite ,Monday nite, and Thurs is just too much football.
2. The protests are already dying off.
3. I watch my team, and highlights, I don't give a shit if Oakland and San Diego are playing.
As far as sleazy owners etc, your own Louisville Cards are a pretty sleazy outfit athletically

[X-band '01]

So, I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I have heard numerous times already this year that attendance and tv ratings are down across the NFL this season, while College Football is actually up. This has made me to start questioning why? Just wanted to see what other people on here thought. Here are some options that I thought of:

1.) The NFL product has started to suck both at games as well as on tv. Especially at games, I think its actually pretty painful. There are countless stoppages in play, huddles etc etc etc..The gameplay itself is actually pretty boring...the offenses and defenses are pretty simliar, where in college, there is a lot more innovation and interesting looks from different teams.

2.) Kaepernick having an effect?

3.) Matchups...have been great thru the first few weeks of the college season, matchups in the NFL have been pretty meh especially on Sunday and Monday nights when eyeballs should all be on one game.

Anything else that people can think of? Honestly, I'd be a huge fan of the NFL failing, (mostly because owners like Jerry Jones and Stan Kroenke are the absolute scum of the earth....they make politicans looks good.) ...I don't see that happening, but it would be nice if their numbers continue to dwindle, and they aren't the behemoth they had been the past 10 or so years.

I would also think that attendance took an initial hit a couple of seasons ago when the NFL blackout policy was amended to the point where home games were no longer blacked out due to non-sellouts.

[bleedXblue]

Anything to the violence aspect, concussions and the NFL's attempt to cover up the issue?

[SemajParlor]

Total NFL reach is up. Time spent viewing is down.

Long story short - people are watching NFL more than last year, it's that they aren't watching for the whole time and they aren't watching other games that are not their teams.

1 .There are many accessible forms of entertainment
2. The election
3. NFL Product is horrible right now. They are also lacking star power.

[SemajParlor]

Baseball is consumed much differently now than it was decades ago and it's certainly second to football. But baseball has been generating record revenue each year. And attendance was rising each year for the past 5 years until this year. Attendance dropped a whopping 184 people per game this year.

Baseball is doing tremendous. The narrative that it's dying is wrong. It dominates regionally.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/maurybrown/2016/09/28/here-are-the-2016-mlb-prime-time-television-ratings-for-each-team/#7d9b9b7b171f

[Xville]

Total NFL reach is up. Time spent viewing is down.

Long story short - people are watching NFL more than last year, it's that they aren't watching for the whole time and they aren't watching other games that are not their teams.

1 .There are many accessible forms of entertainment
2. The election
3. NFL Product is horrible right now. They are also lacking star power.

Are you sure about that? I haven't seen any numbers on that...all I see is that as a whole, ratings are down by double digit percent.

Also, the election can be an excuse for debate nights, but what about the rest? College football sure doesn't seem to be having the same problem when it comes to the election....I think your third point may have more to do with the ratings decline in my opinion. I just think its pure garbage right now.

[fellahmuskie]

Baseball is doing tremendous. The narrative that it's dying is wrong. It dominates regionally.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/maurybrown/2016/09/28/here-are-the-2016-mlb-prime-time-television-ratings-for-each-team/#7d9b9b7b171f

As a big baseball fan, I completely agree. But I am worried about the long-term outlook. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think it has the grip on kids and youth culture it did even 15-20 years ago when I was a little kid. It should be fine for a long time, though.

[D-West & PO-Z]

More places than just TV to watch football and find highlights. You can watch TNF on twitter now. I'm not sure how many people are but that probably doesnt count in TV ratings. I also think TNF games are terrible usually, lack of prep time for the teams on short turnaround causing blowouts and may be causing some football fatigue. You can watch NFL games on 3 nights a week now, throw in CFB which has Saturday and Friday games you can watch football 5/7 nights.

[drudy23]

I'm convinced 75% of people that go to games go for the party atmosphere and tailgating. I think people confuse the popularity of football with the popularity of the experience.

I used to enjoy going to games when I was younger, but I don't even know if a free ticket would get me in the stands when I can enjoy close proximity to food, a bathroom, and no idiots in my own home.

Not to mention the affordability for the younger fan that's likely making up the majority of attendance. It's too damn expensive and not worth the expense of the day, especially 8 times.

And to other's points, I don't think any sport has the grip it used to. So much more to do.

[xu82]

I'm convinced 75% of people that go to games go for the party atmosphere and tailgating. I think people confuse the popularity of football with the popularity of the experience.

I used to enjoy going to games when I was younger, but I don't even know if a free ticket would get me in the stands when I can enjoy close proximity to food, a bathroom, and no idiots in my own home.

Not to mention the affordability for the younger fan that's likely making up the majority of attendance. It's too damn expensive and not worth the expense of the day, especially 8 times.

And to other's points, I don't think any sport has the grip it used to. So much more to do.

I confess there is an idiot in my home most Sunday's during the season, but I'm working on it. My neighbors are in my corner, I'm sure!

I try to get to a game a year (and probably average closer to every other year), but I am WAY past doing season tix, even if I lived where my team plays. It's just over the top with drunken foolishness. Entertaining, but only in small doses. One buddy still has season tix, but his wife won't go any more. I get that. My couch and HDTV with available bathroom and convenient food and beverage choices suit me just fine.

[Nigel Tufnel]

I'm convinced 75% of people that go to games go for the party atmosphere and tailgating. I think people confuse the popularity of football with the popularity of the experience.

I used to enjoy going to games when I was younger, but I don't even know if a free ticket would get me in the stands when I can enjoy close proximity to food, a bathroom, and no idiots in my own home.

Not to mention the affordability for the younger fan that's likely making up the majority of attendance. It's too damn expensive and not worth the expense of the day, especially 8 times.

And to other's points, I don't think any sport has the grip it used to. So much more to do.

Not to mention that an NFL game is comparable to an R rated movie. I'm ok with my 12 year old boy at a game....but don't want my 10 year old girl or 8 year old boy near that experience. I love the Bungs....but I'll stay at home and watch them with a six pack of Truth.

[xu82]

Not to mention that an NFL game is comparable to an R rated movie. I'm ok with my 12 year old boy at a game....but don't want my 10 year old girl or 8 year old boy near that experience. I love the Bungs....but I'll stay at home and watch them with a six pack of Truth.

I went with a friggin' bus of Rotary club folks with my wife and 2 boys about that age to a Tampa/Packers game the last year of the Old Sombrero in Tampa. It got a little sketchy early, but then calmed down. Late in the fourth quarter the 20ish year old Green Bay resident behind us with 3 buddies with similar BAC, shirtless in late December but wearing a purple bra on his head, decided he had had enough. A brawl started which cascaded down several rows and turned very ugly. My wife got the kids to the aisle just in time. We escaped without ever learning if anyone got arrested. I didn't take my boys back to an NFL game until they each turned 16.

[Kahns Krazy]

So, I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I have heard numerous times already this year that attendance and tv ratings are down across the NFL this season, while College Football is actually up.

That's like saying Warren Buffets wealth is down this year but minimum wage is up. I pulled up a week ratings from a few weeks ago and the Sportscenter that aired after MNF was higher rated than the highest college game of the week.

[Xville]

That's like saying Warren Buffets wealth is down this year but minimum wage is up. I pulled up a week ratings from a few weeks ago and the Sportscenter that aired after MNF was higher rated than the highest college game of the week.

That's a pretty simplistic and naive way of looking at things...if this continues, the NFL is going to have a huge problem on their hands. Networks and advertisers are going to be losing money and those contracts that last until 2022 will probably be renegotiated...that's a problem for the behemoth of the nfl.

[Kahns Krazy]

That's a pretty simplistic and naive way of looking at things...if this continues, the NFL is going to have a huge problem on their hands. Networks and advertisers are going to be losing money and those contracts that last until 2022 will probably be renegotiated...that's a problem for the behemoth of the nfl.

Making less money is not the same as losing money. NFL is still number 1 by a lot. Is TV changing dramatically? Of course. Is the NFL in a cycle between superstars? Probably. Is it doom and gloom for the NFL? No way.

[SemajParlor]

The NFL is a pretty awful product right now. The play is really really bad / not fun to watch.

Who is the biggest superstar or most watchable player? What's the biggest storyline?

[Juice]

The NFL is a pretty awful product right now. The play is really really bad / not fun to watch.

Who is the biggest superstar or most watchable player? What's the biggest storyline?

Probably Tom Brady ?

What I find hilarious is that the NFL tries so god damn hard to suppress individual stars but now that the
Product is shit they need the stars.

Keep fining guys for custom shoes. That will keep the eyes glued.

[muskienick]

That's a pretty simplistic and naive way of looking at things...if this continues, the NFL is going to have a huge problem on their hands. Networks and advertisers are going to be losing money and those contracts that last until 2022 will probably be renegotiated...that's a problem for the behemoth of the nfl.

You always have such kind and constructive ways of criticizing others' posts.

[Xville]

Making less money is not the same as losing money. NFL is still number 1 by a lot. Is TV changing dramatically? Of course. Is the NFL in a cycle between superstars? Probably. Is it doom and gloom for the NFL? No way.

Networks and advertisers will be losing money not making less. They will be paying more for the product than what they get in return.

[Caf]

Networks and advertisers will be losing money not making less. They will be paying more for the product than what they get in return.

This sounds like more the problem of networks and the entire TV industry than the NFL. Is there any programming where viewership is going up?

[fellahmuskie]

I know the NBA has been improving. And a lot of soccer numbers have been up. But the NFL is in a tough spot, simply because it was so ridiculously successful for so long. It's tough to maintain that type of insane popularity (and the league's PR gaffes are not helping).

[Kahns Krazy]

Networks and advertisers will be losing money not making less. They will be paying more for the product than what they get in return.

I'm interested in reading your break even analysis. You sound quite knowledgeable.

[Juice]

This is a valid point


El Flaco ‏@bomani_jones
field goal. commercial. kickoff. commercial. this doesn't help, nfl.

[Xville]

I'm interested in reading your break even analysis. You sound quite knowledgeable.

I don't have the hard numbers...but toward the bottom of this article is where I got my info.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/nfl-ratings-plunge-could-spell-doom-for-traditional-tv/2016/10/14/a7a23dc2-915f-11e6-9c85-ac42097b8cc0_story.html

[xubrew]

TV ratings are down across the board. In sports and in everything else. People still go to movies (although I can't say that I do), but what people watch on TV, and how they watch it, has changed. I actually pay pretty close attentions to ratings. I don't know why I find it interesting, but I do. I'm starting to think that, while they're still a decent measurement when it comes to a general indicator, they're actually not that accurate. You don't need to watch a game "On TV" to watch it anymore.

I don't it's one or two big things. I think it is a lot of things. Twitter, live stats (seems to suit fantasy players, which is a big reason the game is popular), video streaming (when you're watching a game on a computer, chances are you're doing six other things as well so a lot of active streams aren't active for very long), DVR (this may not be as true for sports, but most people no longer watch TV in real time anymore), the election (ratings for football generally drop in an election year), and really just not needing to watch a game to know what's going on in a game. Most fans are not diehard fans. Passively following the action is good enough.

I don't watch the NFL, so I can't speak to that specific industry, but I do know that I don't need to watch a game on TV to watch it anymore. I don't even need to be at home. I can be somewhere doing something else and still be able to watch or follow a game. So, those don't show up in Neilsen even though I'm still watching it. For me personally, that's a big part of it.

I also wonder how much the availability of the out of area games zaps the ratings. Not everyone who watches the NFL is watching the same thing, so the ratings may be somewhat split, which will lower them.

If you add all those things together, does a ten percent dip make sense?? Does all that add up to ten percent?? (or fifteen percent, or whatever they're claiming that it is?). It may not mean a drop in popularity, and even if it does, that probably isn't the main culprit.

[Juice]

TV ratings are down across the board. In sports and in everything else. People still go to movies (although I can't say that I do), but what people watch on TV, and how they watch it, has changed. I actually pay pretty close attentions to ratings. I don't know why I find it interesting, but I do. I'm starting to think that, while they're still a decent measurement when it comes to a general indicator, they're actually not that accurate. You don't need to watch a game "On TV" to watch it anymore.

I don't it's one or two big things. I think it is a lot of things. Twitter, live stats (seems to suit fantasy players, which is a big reason the game is popular), video streaming (when you're watching a game on a computer, chances are you're doing six other things as well so a lot of active streams aren't active for very long), DVR (this may not be as true for sports, but most people no longer watch TV in real time anymore), the election (ratings for football generally drop in an election year), and really just not needing to watch a game to know what's going on in a game. Most fans are not diehard fans. Passively following the action is good enough.

I don't watch the NFL, so I can't speak to that specific industry, but I do know that I don't need to watch a game on TV to watch it anymore. I don't even need to be at home. I can be somewhere doing something else and still be able to watch or follow a game. So, those don't show up in Neilsen even though I'm still watching it. For me personally, that's a big part of it.

I also wonder how much the availability of the out of area games zaps the ratings. Not everyone who watches the NFL is watching the same thing, so the ratings may be somewhat split, which will lower them.

If you add all those things together, does a ten percent dip make sense?? Does all that add up to ten percent?? (or fifteen percent, or whatever they're claiming that it is?). It may not mean a drop in popularity, and even if it does, that probably isn't the main culprit.

Ratings are up for the MLB playoffs over the last two years http://awfulannouncing.com/2016/are-we-gonna-talk-about-how-good-baseballs-postseason-ratings-have-been.html

[xubrew]

Ratings are up for the MLB playoffs over the last two years http://awfulannouncing.com/2016/are-we-gonna-talk-about-how-good-baseballs-postseason-ratings-have-been.html

I've heard that baseball's ratings are up. But after seeing the numbers, they're alarmingly low despite being up. From the article.....


Overall, FS1 averaged 3.7 million viewers for its nine NLDS telecasts — up 32% from its ALDS coverage last year (2.8M) and up 18% from its NLDS coverage in 2014 (3.1M).

There are regular season college basketball games (albeit not many) that draw will more viewers than that. I didn't think the numbers would be anywhere close to 10 million, but to have less than 4 million for a playoff game kind of surprises me, especially if the numbers went UP to get there. You'd think there'd be over 2 million viewers just in the state of Illinois with the Cubs being there.

[GuyFawkes38]

I think part of it is pretty simple. The Thursday, Sunday, Monday night games have been awful. Terrible scheduling by the NFL. Missing Manning and Brady didn't help. Having the lead story to the season being the Kaepernick controversy probably didn't help.

[X-band '01]

On the other hand, it's nice to keep the playoff baseball games on the tube while there are subpar primetime NFL games. I'd be curious to see what kind of ratings that the NLCS will get on FS1.

[Juice]

On the other hand, it's nice to keep the playoff baseball games on the tube while there are subpar primetime NFL games. I'd be curious to see what kind of ratings that the NLCS will get on FS1.

Overnight ratings:
Colts-Texans: 9.0 (NBC)
Cubs-Dodgers: 5.0 (FS1)

[X-band '01]

Not surprising given FS1's lack of accessibility over a free network.

[Caf]

http://www.espn.com/dallas/nba/story/_/id/10662203/dallas-mavericks-owner-mark-cuban-says-greedy-nfl-10-years-away-implosion

Fun to read over 2 years into his 10 year prediction.

[xubrew]

Overnight ratings:
Colts-Texans: 9.0 (NBC)
Cubs-Dodgers: 5.0 (FS1)

Okay, that seems closer to what I would expect. 9.0 is actually really good if that's the rating and not the share. Nine percent of everyone who owns a television was watching the game. For baseball that's REALLY good, even if it is the Cubs.

EDIT: Nevermind. The Colts and Texans aren't baseball teams. I'm leaving now.

[Smails]

Last night's shit show in Arizona certainly won't help the cause. That was terrifying..

[fellahmuskie]

It's gonna be funny to see what the NFL apologists say next year when the ratings drop even more.

[xubrew]

I don't care about the NFL, but is the interest in the league really declining, or is the ratings drop simply proportionate to what you would expect with how the ratings have generally dropped for TV across the board and with all of the forms of communication that exist now?

[SemajParlor]

March 24, 2014

http://www.espn.com/dallas/nba/story/_/id/10662203/dallas-mavericks-owner-mark-cuban-says-greedy-nfl-10-years-away-implosion

[xubrew]

March 24, 2014

http://www.espn.com/dallas/nba/story/_/id/10662203/dallas-mavericks-owner-mark-cuban-says-greedy-nfl-10-years-away-implosion

Interesting read. Thanks!

[Juice]

Michael Mulvihill ‏@mulvihill79 1h1 hour ago
Update on year to year NFL viewership through Week 7

Regionalized
FOX: -1%
CBS: -9%

Non-Regionalized
TNF: -18%
SNF: -19%
MNF: -24%

[SemajParlor]

Michael Mulvihill ‏@mulvihill79 1h1 hour ago
Update on year to year NFL viewership through Week 7

Regionalized
FOX: -1%
CBS: -9%

Non-Regionalized
TNF: -18%
SNF: -19%
MNF: -24%

He's one of my favorite follows.

[X-band '01]

Just because there's a pivotal Jaguars-Titans matchup on Thursday Night Football shouldn't mean that its viewership should be down, right?

People complain about all 30 teams having All-Star reps but nobody complains about all 32 NFL teams being guaranteed at least one prime-time regular season game?

[bleedXblue]

March 24, 2014

http://www.espn.com/dallas/nba/story/_/id/10662203/dallas-mavericks-owner-mark-cuban-says-greedy-nfl-10-years-away-implosion

guy is smart

[Juice]

Just because there's a pivotal Jaguars-Titans matchup on Thursday Night Football shouldn't mean that its viewership should be down, right?

People complain about all 30 teams having All-Star reps but nobody complains about all 32 NFL teams being guaranteed at least one prime-time regular season game?

or how about the Texans having 5!! prime time games

[xu82]

or how about the Texans having 5!! prime time games

It was a decent guess, I guess....

[Juice]

World Series ratings way up

https://twitter.com/CorkGaines/status/791749669663547392

[GoMuskies]

World Series ratings way up

https://twitter.com/CorkGaines/status/791749669663547392

Of course they are. They'd be down if the Dodgers had won the NLCS.

[Juice]

You know why ratings are down? "Contractual obligations" require CBS to cut away from a game in OT. Prohibiting people from seeing your product is usually not conducive to good numbers.

[xu82]

You know why ratings are down? "Contractual obligations" require CBS to cut away from a game in OT. Prohibiting people from seeing your product is usually not conducive to good numbers. Yeah, after they cut away from My Bills game to show me a competitive game. Then to yank it away! I had to go back to DTV to see the OT game. Good thing my TV expense is almost the GDP of Guatemala.

[Juice]

FOX Sports PR
‏@FOXSportsPR
World Series Game 7 average audience is over 40 million viewers - it is
the most-watched baseball game in 25 years.

[Xville]

So Richard Shemran came out and said that ratings are bad because the league doesn't allow for individuality and is not entertaining.

I can kind of see his point, but I think it has a bit more to do with the fact that people's eyes have opened up to the fact that the game play itself is extremely boring. 5 minutes of commercials, kick off, 5 minutes of commericals, huddle for 30 seconds, run a play that lasts 3 seconds, back to a huddle for 30 seconds...turnover, 5 minutes of commercials etc etc etc.

The offenses are generic and boring in the NFL and it lacks the pagentry and connectiveness ( not sure if that is a word) that people have to college football. Though I know the NFL have ratings higher than college, it seems that one is trending up, while the other is trending down.

[bleedXblue]

I think the product is fine.......and I think Cuban nailed it. Too much of a good thing can be a not so good thing. Monday, Thursday and all day Sunday is to much.....

[Xville]

I think the product is fine.......and I think Cuban nailed it. Too much of a good thing can be a not so good thing. Monday, Thursday and all day Sunday is to much.....

Maybe....but games have been on Sunday and Monday for a long time and that hasn't been an issue until now. Thursdays, no one is watching anyways. I think that the NFL may have been propped up a bit with ratings due to fantasy football for quite some time, and I think that is finally decreasing as well. There are a lot of people I know that are no longer playing fantasy football this year for the first time in a decade.

Come to think of it, maybe that is another reason why the ratings have decreased?....people started to slowly start cheering for their fantasy teams, rather than their actual teams due to the growth of fantasy sports. Maybe now that fantasy football has started to decline (don't know if that's accurate but around my circle it has), the interest in the NFL has started to decline.

I know that there are probably many factors as to the decline in the NFL viewership, but I really think the NFL needs to figure it out because I don't think this is just a fluke.

[Kahns Krazy]

FOX Sports PR
‏@FOXSportsPR
World Series Game 7 average audience is over 40 million viewers - it is
the most-watched baseball game in 25 years.

Great for baseball! Nearly 35% of the last Football championship game. Take that NFL!

[Caf]

So Richard Shemran came out and said that ratings are bad because the league doesn't allow for individuality and is not entertaining.

I can kind of see his point, but I think it has a bit more to do with the fact that people's eyes have opened up to the fact that the game play itself is extremely boring. 5 minutes of commercials, kick off, 5 minutes of commericals, huddle for 30 seconds, run a play that lasts 3 seconds, back to a huddle for 30 seconds...turnover, 5 minutes of commercials etc etc etc.

The offenses are generic and boring in the NFL and it lacks the pagentry and connectiveness ( not sure if that is a word) that people have to college football. Though I know the NFL have ratings higher than college, it seems that one is trending up, while the other is trending down.

I'll bite. I think Sherman has a point. I'm here watching NBA games and it's probably going to take me a month to know what team players are on. This is both from the steady stream of draft talent to the absolutely on fire free agent market. Do you think people are excited to see KD play for GS? Both from a basketball and drama perspective? I know I am. The product, standings, and games are consistently changing.

The NFL likes to think it has parody but it doesn't. Take a look at the Super Bowls since 2004 and you'll notice the below trend.

2016 Broncos (manning)
2015 Patriots
2014 Broncos (manning)
2013 -exception-
2012 Giants-Patriots
2011 Steelers
2010 Colts (manning)
2009 Steelers
2008 Patriots-Giants
2007 Colts (manning)
2006 Steelers
2005 Patriots
2004 Patriots

Of the last 12 Super Bowls: 4 have involved Peyton Manning, 5 have involved the Patriots, 3 have involved the Steelers, and 2 the Giants. And members of that group have won 9 of the last 12 Super Bowls. Seattle, Green Bay, and New Orleans are the others. Is this trend possibly a bit disenfranchising?

[Kahns Krazy]

The NFL likes to think it has parody but it doesn't.

Haha. Oh wait...