Full Nielsen

nfl Tampa Bay Buccaneers baker mayfield
The decision to change the way Nielsen counts streamers is certain to mitigate the expected NFL viewer shortfall. Photo: Stacy Revere/Getty Images
John Ourand
September 10, 2024

Regular readers of The Varsity don’t need to be reminded that NFL games accounted for 93 of the top 100 highest-rated broadcasts on television last year. NBC’s Sunday Night Football has been the most watched primetime show for a record 13 consecutive years, and last season’s Super Bowl drew the largest audience in history. And that’s precisely why league and network officials are totally unconcerned by a forecasted drop in viewership this season. Even if the presidential election (and its aftermath) steals eyeballs, as expected, the NFL is so much more popular than everything else that network executives won’t exactly be losing sleep (or at least… losing any more sleep). As entertainment viewers migrate to streaming, sports fans are the last remaining holdouts supporting the cable bundle—every cliffpath, glidepath, or grinfuck be damned… (Again, yes, yes, you know all this…)