Fansided

NFL ratings strong early but fell off later

By Derek Helling

DETROIT, MI - SEPTEMBER 24: Members of the Detroit Lions take a knee during the playing of the national anthem prior to the start of the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Ford Field on September 24, 2017 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)
DETROIT, MI - SEPTEMBER 24: Members of the Detroit Lions take a knee during the playing of the national anthem prior to the start of the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Ford Field on September 24, 2017 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) /
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The quantity and duration of anthem protests in Sunday’s slate of NFL games had one undeniably positive effect for the league’s broadcast partners early in the day.

Whether they did so with a favorable or unfavorable view of anthem protests, it seems that many people across the nation tuned in to watch the early NFL games on Sunday, but that NFL ratings bump fell off as the day waned.

While final numbers won’t be out until later this week, the overnight ratings demonstrate a variety almost as diverse as fans’ reactions to the protests. The bottom line is that while the overnight ratings aren’t bad, they weren’t great either.

The league’s broadcast partners had to be worried about a significant drop-off due to the anthem protests, and the good news for them is that a significant reduction in either share or viewership wasn’t experienced. In fact, for pregame coverage and the 1 p.m. ET slate of contests, there was a significant bump.

While overnight numbers from Fox’s games are still pending, what can be inferred from these CBS and NBC overnights is that a large portion of the television audience tuned in to watch the anthem protest drama, then returned to their normal habits after taking in the events. If Fox’s overnights present a similar finding of an early bump tapering off through the later games, that narrative will be strengthened.

Whether audiences viewed CBS’ and NBC’s coverage of the anthem protests favorably or not, the result is good news for them. Both corporations are paying a king’s ransom for the rights to televise NFL games, and in order to make that a profitable venture, need strong ratings to report to potential advertisers. Sunday’s early games helped that cause almost as much as Tony Romo’s stellar commentary.

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While the drops in the later games weren’t as good of news as the early bump, the fact that the ratings weren’t down by 20 percent or more throughout the day is a net positive for the NFL and its broadcasters.