Posted on 09/14/2020 8:42:26 AM PDT by EdnaMode
SoFi Stadium was devoid of fans on last night’s Sunday Night Football due to the coronavirus pandemic, but full of victory for hometown heroes the Los Angeles Rams. Sadly that winning feeling wasn’t reflected in the ratings for NBC and the NFL.
The team’s first game at their new $5 billion digs saw the Rams take down the Dallas Cowboys 20-17 in a grinding battle. It was also a game that saw Rams’ running back Malcolm Brown score two touchdowns and nail a career topping 79 yards. Fighting right to the end against that wall of the Rams’ defense in a very rough and tumble showdown, the Cowboys early on also saw starting linebacker Leighton Vander Esch exiting from a collarbone injury. All in all, not a good start for Mike McCarthey’s
With all that on-field action, and coming off the disappointing ratings of the NFL season kickoff on September 10, the league and the Comcast-owned network were looking for a win themselves this football packed weekend.
Even with the usual ratings gold of Jerry Jone’s team on the field, the NFL and NBC didn’t get that win – at least not in the early numbers.
Putting on the two teams with big national followings, SNF snared a 4.7 in early ratings among adults 18-49 and 14.81 million viewers last night.
In numbers certain to change, that’s a fall of 28% in the ratings and a hard decline of 23% in sets of eyeballs from what the September 8, 2019 official start of SNF snagged in the early numbers of its opening game of last season. While the early Nielsen data lacks West Coast numbers, which is kind of important when you have a team from the mega-market of LA playing, this result is going to be hard pill for the NFL and NBC to swallow.
To add some further context, the 33-3 pummeling of the Pittsburgh Steelers by then reigning Super Bowl champs the New England Patriots last year went on to pull in an audience of 22.2 million on NBC, which was pretty much even with SNF’s 2018 season premiere. That 2019 figure inched up to 22.7 million when digital platform viewing was added in.
Also, at this point, last night’s SNF is down nearly 10% in the key demo from the early results of the the Kansas City Chiefs near blowout season opener win over the Houston Texans on September 10 this year. That primetime game at Arrowhead Stadium did have a scattering of fans (just over 17,000 in a venue built for more than 76,000) and a strong and blunt social justice and anti-racism message from the league and players – which was booed by said fans. In what may be indicative of where the NFL is already drifting, last night’s SNF was much more subdued in its stance over such issues and saw only a few players take a knee during the national anthem.
We will update with more SNF ratings, plus how 60 Minutes’ exclusive sit-down with Bob Woodward on his new Trump book did and the rest of last night’s ratings, as we get them
In the meantime, the sun isn’t shining here in LA due to the wildfires ravaging the state, but we go a bit of a glow on Sunday, if you know what I mean?
If you watched the game, you realize that the NFL has a problem with officiating that is threatening what is left of the integrity of the game. strong suspicion that some of these zebras have crooked stripes. The core of the NFL audience are the gamblers. So much money is at stake, only a fool would think that these guys are calling it straight. Last night they took the game away from Dallas with a phony offensive pass interference call. There have been just too many obvious bad calls that effect outcomes. A couple of arrests will be the coup de grace for the NFL.
The NFL can’t go bankrupt fast enough.
The networks would never allow it to be known if only a million people watched - advertisers would immediately start screaming and filing lawsuits to break their contracts.
60 Minutes loses their NFL viewer lead-in. Another positive I hadn’t thought to consider.
Nothing phony about that PI. He extended is arm and the guy stumbled back. That is textbook offensive PI. Don’t know why Al and Chris were whining, it the EXACT Michael Irvin move that caused the rule to exist in the first place.
Viewed kneeling and switched off. Next game in half time a video on racial injustice in the USA. Switched to Perry Mason Marathon.
There is great inflation in stadium costs nowadays.
Some of the newer stadiums, such as the Cowboys and 49ers and Falcons stadiums, cost over a billion but far less than $2 billion. And here we see an eye popping $5 billion for a stadium.
If the NFL declines in popularity in the years ahead, that $5 billion spent for the Rams and Chargers to have a new stadium may turn out not to be a such a great investment.
Still not low enough. It is astonishing if not sadly unsurprising that any red blooded American would watch these flag-defiling, Commie-supporting aholes.
When jerry took a knee my beginnings of support for the cowboys disappeared, never to return.
The nfl got the message 2 years ago when they stopped that knee taking crap and got me back.
Now this is like finding out the woman you loved (and I did love the nfl) and caught cheating and took back when she promised “never again” is caught for the second time
— only this time she AND her lover yelled from the bed: “watcha gonna do about it?” The only answer is divorce. I wish I could do it “Total Recall” style.
The guys watching now are basically sitting with their cuckholer and sharing a beer with one straw.
Goodell pushed his chips all in on this cops killing people narrative and his support of BLM.
He and the NFL need to be taught a hard and painful lesson.
“Sadly, “14.81 million viewers last night” is still a LOT of viewers.”
I wonder how many of those viewers lived anywhere but the DFW and LA metro areas? I think this is where the NFL and other pro sports are hurting themselves. The die-hard football fan who would literally watch any good match-up probably isn’t now unless his hometown team is involved.
I don’t think many live in L.A. L.A. does not care much about pro football, and has not for a long time. Their MLS teams probably have more engaged fans. Should have stayed in St. Louis.
LA wasn’t in those numbers per story but even a 20% drop from last year would send a message.
It’s a good start.
Nobody cares about the Rams in LA.
I caught some of the local news here in Phoenix.
It almost seemed like they were putting extra effort into talking about football during non-sports segments.
The Raiders are still the most popular team in LA. Many will make the trek to Vegas for their home games.
If your hometown team blew you off, moved halfway across the country and then returned a quarter-century later only after extorting a $5 billion stadium from you, you wouldn’t care about them either.
FoxNews had 3 or 4 lead stories about NFL teams/games, I left and won’t go back to their site until Wednesday when these stories are gone, hate the NFL and NBA and basically all prof sports now
That is true. The Raiders really wanted to go back to L.A. but Goodell nixed it. Images of gang-bangers in South Central and Compton outfitted in silver and black did not fit his new narrative too well.
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