Troy Aikman: NFL May Not Remain No. 1 Sport

[EmpireWF]

Don't more people watch random MNF games, than the world series?

MNF averaged about 13 million viewers this past season

Below are the top 14 MNF (with one NFLN thrown in) games in terms of viewers. In comparison, the 2011 World Series (STL/TEX) did these numbers, remember on network television (as of 2010, ESPN was in under a 100 million homes):

Game 1 - 14.2M
Game 2 - 14.3M
Game 3 - 11.2M
Game 4 - 15.2M
Game 5 - 14.3M
Game 6 - 21.1M
Game 7 - 25.4M…………averaging 16.6M for the series


1. ESPN Monday Night Football (Redskins-Cowboys), 9/26
17.1 million
2. ESPN Monday Night Football (Bears-Eagles), 11/7
16.8 million
3. ESPN Monday Night Football (Steelers-49ers), 12/19
16.7 million
4. ESPN Monday Night Football (Bears-Lions), 10/10
16.4 million
5. ESPN Monday Night Football (Falcons-Saints), 12/26
15.6 million
6. ESPN Monday Night Football (Patriots-Dolphins), 9/12
14.6 million
7. ESPN Monday Night Football (Giants-Saints), 11/28
14.4 million
8. ESPN Monday Night Football (Vikings-Packers), 11/14
14.2 million
9. ESPN Monday Night Football (Chiefs-Patriots), 11/21
12.3 million
10. ESPN Monday Night Football (Dolphins-Jets), 10/17
12.1 million
11. ESPN Monday Night Football (Chargers-Chiefs), 10/31
12.0 million
12. ESPN Monday Night Football (Rams-Giants), 9/19
11.9 million
13. ESPN Monday Night Football (Raiders-Broncos), 9/12
11.1 million
14. ESPN Monday Night Football (Colts-Bucs), 10/3
10.8 million
15. NFLN Thursday Night Football (49ers-Ravens), 11/24
10.7 million

 

[FirstTimer]

There's not a chance in hell CFB takes over as the leading sport instead of the NFL.

/thatisall

If CFB got a legit playoff system...I could see it.

 

[ralaw]

If CFB got a legit playoff system...I could see it.

I couldn't...for some of the reasons jms has mentioned the NFL's success is rooted in the fact that the players are identifiable, fantasy sports and its just professional sports. Collegefootball is very regional and its "stars" are here today and gone tomorrow. Most casual fans don't even know who Andrew Luck is. In the end professional sport in any sport is seen as being the better product, because the level of play is higher.

 

[jaxjaggywires]

This is like saying Apple won't remain the #1 tech company. No shit...things change. Eventually, yeah, something will happen that knocks football off its pedestal. Happened to baseball, it will eventually happen to football.

 

[MvP]

The problem with the Monday Night and Thursday Night games this season was that the majority of the match-ups were complete shit. While the league may be over saturated, it only got that way because it wasn't saturated enough when you look previous revenues, tv ratings and such.

As a fan of a team that doesn't play anywhere close to where I live, the more time slots for my team to potentially be on national TV, the better.

 

[NAHSTE]

I realize I'm in the minority but I agree completely with Aikman, and he's about two years behind me in that opinion.

NFL has been diluting its product for years, and it's only gotten worse since Goodell took over.

 

[Liquidrob]

Please no 18 games, expansion, etc...I lose more and more interest every year in the NFL as it is

lol @ College football, it's run like Pro Wrestling

 

[EmpireWF]

lol @ College football, it's run like UFC

Fixed.

No set rankings. They pick and choose who gets the title shot. :longo:

 

[NAHSTE]

College football is the second most popular sport right now, and of course football is our favorite game ... so if the NFL slips at all, and CFB gets their title selection process down to a more logical system, it could very easily supplant the NFL.

 

[EmpireWF]

College football is the second most popular sport right now, and of course football is our favorite game ... so if the NFL slips at all, and CFB gets their title selection process down to a more logical system, it could very easily supplant the NFL.

No.

Baseball is the second most popular. CFB is #3.

http://www.harrisinteractive.com/Ne...cleId/675/ctl/ReadCustom Default/Default.aspx

For the NFL to dip below college right now, there would have to be a death on the field, murder, league wide scandal, losing television, or something else that won't happen.

 

[strahanfan92]

Parity is hurting football and that also makes it harder to schedule a great MNF matchup.

 

[jms493]

Goddell set a revenue goal of 25 million per year by 2027. He wont get that by shrinking the league. I dont really agree with all this commercialization of the NFL but this guy sees it as a business and nothing else. I am interested to see what happens with this business. This guy could be coming for a quick grab and go and leave the league on crutches.

 

[NAHSTE]

No.

Baseball is the second most popular. CFB is #3.

:facepalm:

All that poll asks is: "If you had to choose, which ONE of these sports would you say is your favorite?" Baseball is the favorite sport of 17% of Americans. Does not mean the other 83% who do not like baseball wouldn't list CFB over it.

Apparently JeremyHight needs to teach you how to interpret studies too.

If the NFL had a work stoppage at any point, CFB would easily fill the vacuum and the MLB would still get 5 minutes a night on SportsCenter.

Football is more popular than baseball among Americans, and the college product is damn near as good (if not better*) than the NFL product these days.






*- it is

 

[ralaw]

NAHSTE, I get the football is king, but college football isn't. There are a host of factors that contribute to the NFL being #1 and it goes far beyond just about football, but instead the players being identifiable, fantasy football, it being a professional sport, etc. In the major sports college athletics never overtakes it's professional counterpart.

 

[Trmszczykowski]

I don't think NCAA will ever take place over NFL in my heart. For the sole reason that I can watch a Panthers game every week, but I am lucky to get a televised Wake Forest game 3 times a season.

 

[EmpireWF]

Nahste's been bitching about the NFL most weeks of the season for about two years now. At least you're consistent.

Of course the NFL is overexposing it self with all their television expansion, but there's obviously a demand for it ($$$$$$$$$$). You can knock the competitiveness of some teams (Jags, Dolphins, Vikings, etc.) and all the rules changes, but it's still the NFL.

Right now, it's an unstoppable machine. Not even expanding to an 18 game season can change that.

 

[NAHSTE]

NAHSTE, I get the football is king, but college football isn't. There are a host of factors that contribute to the NFL being #1 and it goes far beyond just about football, but instead the players being identifiable, fantasy football, it being a professional sport, etc. In the major sports college athletics never overtakes it's professional counterpart.

SRS? Dorks like OOBL who live in Rhode Island, nowhere near a prominent college program, have enough information on hand to do FOUR ROUND MOCK DRAFTS in February. You don't think the players are identifiable? Every major conference will have a national TV deal within five years. The Pac 12 and SEC contracts are worth BILLIONS, and ensure that every single game played by every single team is broadcast nationally via either TV or internet. I don't think recognition of the players will be an issue. I don't even think that's an issue now. There's a whole culture devoted to learning these kids names at 17 years old.

As for fantasy, yeah the fantasy model sucks right now. But you can bet if there were an NFL work stoppage, the fantasy sites would be cooking up a new model for the new revenue streams and all the junkies would eventually migrate over.

College football is far more beloved in our country than major league baseball, and I don't even think that's a radical assertion. It'd take something major for the NFL to lose its place at #1, but if it ever did, it wouldn't be baseball taking its place.

 

[Liquidrob]

Fixed.

No set rankings. They pick and choose who gets the title shot. :longo:

I know, I used Pro Wrestling because I didnt want to stick with my Zuffa/UFC hate theme for at least one thread

I made threads in the past that the UFC is run like the BCS, just awful way to run a league

CFB even has squash matches just like in Pro Wrestling, lol

 

[EmpireWF]

There's a whole culture devoted to learning these kids names at 17 years old.

Is that really a national deal? Beyond the Army H.S. All Star game on NBC, the high school kids are not pushed in most media outlets unless you seek it out, or live in some podunk southern town.

 

[NAHSTE]

Is that really a national deal? Beyond the Army H.S. All Star game on NBC, the high school kids are not pushed in most media outlets unless you seek it out, or live in some podunk southern town.

Do you not have ESPN at your house? I watched Tim Tebow play twice when he was still in high school, both on national TV. And that was eight years ago, before things got out of control.

lhoss: