Football Ratings Are Down

[GGGG]

3) If ratings suddenly reverse themselves, are the reasons given this past week that nicknames, domestic violence and other excuses are not applicable?

Yes.  That has pretty much what I have said all along.

[rocket surgeon]

I think you just described why these protests are happening at football games. Protests are most effective when you do them in places you don't expect and are inconvenient to those who aren't part of the movement. I do not know if it is changing behavior but it is certainly reaching plenty of people. Exposure is half the battle.

Ok, but, the unintended/intended consequences may not work in their favor...wait, that was one of my other questions.  What are the signs that these "protests" are working? 

[🏀]

Jamie, you poor, poor soul. Its getting beyond pathetic and sad now.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Ok, but, the unintended/intended consequences may not work in their favor...wait, that was one of my other questions.  What are the signs that these "protests" are working?

Its been what? A month? Were still talking about it. Don't know if its changing behavior but its certainly increasing attention.

[rocket surgeon]

Its been what? A month? Were still talking about it. Don't know if its changing behavior but its certainly increasing attention.

Ohhhhh, so nobody really knew about the cop shootings and educational, joblessness and income disparities and whatever else they are bringing to our attention-got it. 

    Why don't these athletes who've been denied equal opportunities just pool all their monies and take out a bunch of billboards across the country- that would probably attract more attention than just the football fans.  Everyone that drives past will see them and start doin their "fair share" to help out

[GGGG]

    Why don't these athletes who've been denied equal opportunities just pool all their monies and take out a bunch of billboards across the country- that would probably attract more attention than just the football fans. 

No it wouldn't.

[rocket surgeon]

No it wouldn't.

So if they had say 50-100 billboards out across the states on the busiest interstates, they wouldn't reach more or comparable amounts of people?  It would reach those who do not watch football as well.  That way, nobody would be offended

[cheebs09]

So if they had say 50-100 billboards out across the states on the busiest interstates, they wouldn't reach more or comparable amounts of people?  It would reach those who do not watch football as well.  That way, nobody would be offended

It's a water cooler conversation because it's the NFL though. A billboard wouldn't do that. I've seen the protest on covered on local news quite a bit. It's also all over Facebook. It is getting to the non-NFL fan more than a billboard would in my opinion.

[GGGG]

So if they had say 50-100 billboards out across the states on the busiest interstates, they wouldn't reach more or comparable amounts of people? 

Not even close.

[reinko]

So if they had say 50-100 billboards out across the states on the busiest interstates, they wouldn't reach more or comparable amounts of people?  It would reach those who do not watch football as well.  That way, nobody would be offended

How many clicks does espn.com,  foxsports.com, CBSsports.com, nytimes.com, Washingtonpost.com, deadspin.com,  drudge, Huffington,  Fox news.com,  bleacherreport.com, and just about every other news outlet get,  and tell me a billboard on I-94 South near the Pirates Cove Golf in Kenosha have more exposure than the websites above.

[GooooMarquette]

It gets a lot of attention for sure...but nowhere near the coverage of the Ferguson protests.  It's gonna take a lot more than a few football players kneeling during the national anthem to get any changes.

[GGGG]

Yeah I don't think the protests are all that effective, but almost everyone knows about them.

[rocket surgeon]

To all- fair enough.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Ohhhhh, so nobody really knew about the cop shootings and educational, joblessness and income disparities and whatever else they are bringing to our attention-got it. 

    Why don't these athletes who've been denied equal opportunities just pool all their monies and take out a bunch of billboards across the country- that would probably attract more attention than just the football fans.  Everyone that drives past will see them and start doin their "fair share" to help out

Its not just about awareness. We've been aware of the issues forever. The point is we are still talking about it. Regular joes who would never think to have these types of conversations are having them pretty regularly. You won't get that from billboards.

[Tugg Speedman]

Is this why ratings are down?




College Football Games Are Far Too Long
As offenses get faster, college football games are getting longer. When will it reach an end?

http://www.wsj.com/articles/college-football-games-are-far-too-long-1473894842

One morning last week, a plane left Los Angeles at 8:01 a.m. PDT. It was carried across the country by an extraordinary tailwind and made it all the way to Washington, D.C. by 3:02 p.m. ET. Total flight time: 4 hours and 1 minute.

Later that day, a football game between Florida State and Ole Miss kicked off at 8:06 p.m. It smacked into the sport’s ordinary headwinds—short touchdown drives, long television breaks and a longer halftime—and the fourth quarter wasn’t over until 12:10 a.m. Total game time: 4 hours and 4 minutes.

It was the most absurd sign yet of the sport’s creeping bloat: You can fly across the country in the time it takes to play a regulation college-football game these days.

[GGGG]

It was mentioned in the game thread last night, but the NFL has been pretty bad so far this year.  I think teams are forgoing much of pre-season and using the early schedule to ramp up and it is really affecting play.

I mean, if I were a neutral fan, I would have turned that game off at halftime last night.  It was boring.

[Tugg Speedman]

It was mentioned in the game thread last night, but the NFL has been pretty bad so far this year.  I think teams are forgoing much of pre-season and using the early schedule to ramp up and it is really affecting play.

I mean, if I were a neutral fan, I would have turned that game off at halftime last night.  It was boring.

I did exactly that to watch Ballers.  A show about football players is more interesting that football.

[Tugg Speedman]

Can we remember what is happening to NFL and college football attendance and ratings in about two months when the seasonal whining about MU basketball attendance begins? (It is happening everywhere and to everything.)



Big-name universities are turning to beer to boost waning sports attendance and revenue
http://www.businessinsider.com/big-name-universities-are-turning-to-beer-to-boost-waning-sports-attendance-and-revenue-2016-9

Ohio State University football fans attending the first home game of the season earlier this month saw a new concession item on the menu at Ohio Stadium. Among the hot dogs, pretzels and tacos, the game’s attendees were also able to buy cans of Miller Lite.

This season, Ohio State became one of several universities to sell beer at football games. In the last decade, alcohol sales at college stadiums have gone from nearly nonexistent to an increasingly popular -- though largely unproven -- solution for programs hoping to improve sagging attendance at home games.

[Benny B]

Can we remember what is happening to NFL and college football attendance and ratings in about two months when the seasonal whining about MU basketball attendance begins? (It is happening everywhere and to everything.)



Big-name universities are turning to beer to boost waning sports attendance and revenue
http://www.businessinsider.com/big-name-universities-are-turning-to-beer-to-boost-waning-sports-attendance-and-revenue-2016-9

Ohio State University football fans attending the first home game of the season earlier this month saw a new concession item on the menu at Ohio Stadium. Among the hot dogs, pretzels and tacos, the game’s attendees were also able to buy cans of Miller Lite.

This season, Ohio State became one of several universities to sell beer at football games. In the last decade, alcohol sales at college stadiums have gone from nearly nonexistent to an increasingly popular -- though largely unproven -- solution for programs hoping to improve sagging attendance at home games.

This has all sorts of interesting written all over it.... instead of having to deal with just 10-20k binge drinking students, you can now deal with an additional 30-40k sauced-up old white guys.

I've always been of the opinion that not serving alcohol at college games had nothing to do with keeping students from getting drunk... it was always about keeping the adults in line.

[mu03eng]

Can we remember what is happening to NFL and college football attendance and ratings in about two months when the seasonal whining about MU basketball attendance begins? (It is happening everywhere and to everything.)



Big-name universities are turning to beer to boost waning sports attendance and revenue
http://www.businessinsider.com/big-name-universities-are-turning-to-beer-to-boost-waning-sports-attendance-and-revenue-2016-9

Ohio State University football fans attending the first home game of the season earlier this month saw a new concession item on the menu at Ohio Stadium. Among the hot dogs, pretzels and tacos, the game’s attendees were also able to buy cans of Miller Lite.

This season, Ohio State became one of several universities to sell beer at football games. In the last decade, alcohol sales at college stadiums have gone from nearly nonexistent to an increasingly popular -- though largely unproven -- solution for programs hoping to improve sagging attendance at home games.

This has nothing to do with the appeal of the games themselves....it has to do with the fact that it is significantly more enjoyable/cost effective/easy/pick adjective to sit at home or the bar and watch games. This is universities trying to catch up with the at home experience and capture additional revenue.

[GGGG]

1) Why do I have to leave?

2) This isn't a right-wing politics issue.  This isn't a left wing politics issue.  We are talking about why ratings are down this season.  You made a comment that the protests had no impact.  You are wrong.

Mr. Kaepernik can protest all he wants and I support his right to do so.  I, and others, can choose not to support him or the NFL in return.   For me, it is personal because of the law enforcement in my family.  His reason for protesting he stated was due to the police.  He has been invited to spend time with the SF and Oakland police departments and walk in their shoes, which he should do.  He has chosen thus far not to do that.  Fans have a voice, too.  They can click the remote off.

Ratings continue their drop off.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/09/19/packers-vikings-down-16-percent-from-2015-week-two-snf/

FWIW, I think Chicos is right here.  Some people are not watching because of Kaepernick et. al.  There doesn't have to be one singular reason for the drop off.  Undoubtedly this is one - only time will tell how prominent that reason is.

[mu03eng]

Ratings continue their drop off.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/09/19/packers-vikings-down-16-percent-from-2015-week-two-snf/

FWIW, I think Chicos is right here.  Some people are not watching because of Kaepernick et. al.  There doesn't have to be one singular reason for the drop off.  Undoubtedly this is one - only time will tell how prominent that reason is.

You're probably right, but as you pointed out about all the nicks, it's probably not just Kaepernick that causes a person to stop watching but a combination with Kaepernick being the final straw so to speak.

I'm betting if you could segment such things the Kepernick scenario is responsible for very few defections, but it adds up with everything else. NFL needs to start figuring out how to right the ship because this isn't going to bite them now or even the next 5 years....but 10 years out could look a lot shakier than it does now.

*I do think we are in an age where statistics are misleading....the actual number of eyeballs that watched the game I don't think is appreciably smaller but how people are watching games is changing.

[Pakuni]

Ratings continue their drop off.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/09/19/packers-vikings-down-16-percent-from-2015-week-two-snf/

FWIW, I think Chicos is right here.  Some people are not watching because of Kaepernick et. al.  There doesn't have to be one singular reason for the drop off.  Undoubtedly this is one - only time will tell how prominent that reason is.

i

I'd find the argument more compelling if the NFL ratings dip was taking place in a vacuum, but it's not.
Last night's Emmys ratings were an all-time low, and 5 percent lower than last year's show ... which had been the previous all-time low.
Olympics ratings were way down. College football ratings are down. Final Four ratings fell 30 percent. Oscars ratings were at an 8-year low. Grammy ratings hit a 6-year low.

Seems to me the more likely culprits than Colin Kaepernick are a) streaming and/or other methods and  b) people watching less TV.
But that's boring and apolitical, so let's by all means continue to blame it on a tiny minority of players who refuse to partake in forced patriotism.

[mu03eng]

i

I'd find the argument more compelling if the NFL ratings dip was taking place in a vacuum, but it's not.
Last night's Emmys ratings were an all-time low, and 5 percent lower than last year's show ... which had been the previous all-time low.
Olympics ratings were way down. College football ratings are down. Final Four ratings fell 30 percent. Oscars ratings were at an 8-year low. Grammy ratings hit a 6-year low.

Seems to me the more likely culprits than Colin Kaepernick are a) streaming and/or other methods and  b) people watching less TV.
But that's boring and apolitical, so let's by all means continue to blame it on a tiny minority of players who refuse to partake in forced patriotism.

I generally agree with this analysis

[GGGG]

i

I'd find the argument more compelling if the NFL ratings dip was taking place in a vacuum, but it's not.
Last night's Emmys ratings were an all-time low, and 5 percent lower than last year's show ... which had been the previous all-time low.
Olympics ratings were way down. College football ratings are down. Final Four ratings fell 30 percent. Oscars ratings were at an 8-year low. Grammy ratings hit a 6-year low.

Seems to me the more likely culprits than Colin Kaepernick are a) streaming and/or other methods and  b) people watching less TV.
But that's boring and apolitical, so let's by all means continue to blame it on a tiny minority of players who refuse to partake in forced patriotism.

I can buy the macro reasons like you point out as well.  And anecdotally it makes sense to me.