NFL "Don'ts"

The NFL has seen a tumble in viewership through the first quarter of the 2016 NFL season. Network viewing is down about 10% from last season. Declines are even more steep for the prime time games of Sunday, Monday, and Thursday. Many have pointed to the ridiculous Presidential election that's facing the country as the reason. The NFL can't do much about that and it's unfortunate that the mind-numbing debates are scheduled for game nights. Fortunately, this political nonsense can't go on forever. Right?

The NFL also can't do anything about what feels like a more interesting than usual baseball playoffs. Like the ridiculous election, baseball also has an end date.

 So, what can the NFL do? My initial reaction is nothing. There's really nothing that anyone can do about declining television viewing. Most people, especially younger people, no longer view television in the manner that they did even a decade ago. Technology has changed everything. Whether due to fantasy football or simply short attention spans, many people just want highlights. They just want to see the scoring plays. They can get that on their itty-bitty devices. Many people simply don't have the patience to sit and watch an entire football game. It's a damn shame. From my perch, the game will always be more interesting than the highlights. The NFL has been catering to these short-attention-span fans for years. They even created many of those fans. Now, the NFL might be suffering for it.

Is there anything that the NFL can do about these declining viewing numbers? Well, I have some things that they can stop doing. Some "Don'ts"

DON'T play Monday night double headers on the opening week of the season.
Starting an NFL game at 10:30 pm on the east coast is just stupid. It also doesn't help that the last two Monday nightcaps have been truly shitty games. At least the quality of those two games did give east coast fans a reason to go to bed at a decent hour.

DON'T start Sunday games at 6:30 am on the west coast. This is as stupid as the late Monday start times for the east coast. These early Sunday starts are for the London games. If they have to play games in London, and the NFL clearly thinks that they do, play them at a time that works for their current fans.

DON'T play Thursday games. Some might argue that the human body isn't meant to go through a single NFL game. It's definitely not meant to go through two in four days. I've heard reports that players no longer "belly-ache" about the physical punishment of playing these Thurday night games. That they "like" them now because of the mini-bye that follows them. I really think that this reported view from the players is due more to an acceptance that these games aren't going anywhere than actually "liking" them. Once an NFL season starts players aren't physically healthy again until about a month after the season. I've heard players say that their body hasn't recovered from a Sunday game until about Friday. The NFL will never be about player safety as long as they play games on Thursday.

Those three DON'Ts all play to the "more-isn't-necessarily-better" theme. How much is enough? Personally, I think that the NFL has gone far beyond enough. The NFL is so hell-bent on expanding their brand that they are sacrificing the quality of their product. The play on the field is the most important thing. That's what makes the game so exciting and so much fun. That's what attracts the fans. The play on the field is suffering as the NFL tries to sell more of it. The late Monday night games have been shitty. The London games are often sloppy and poorly played. The Thursday games are often blow-outs. One or both teams rarely look ready to play the game. The most prominent NFL games have become the least appealing.

Maybe the NFL is losing viewers because fans and potential fans don't want to tune into a game that isn't entertaining.

The biggest DON'T that I have for the NFL may also boost the viewing numbers.

DON'T let Roger Goodell dole out punishment or hear an appeal ever again. And DON'T let him or anyone else in the NFL offices ever hire Ted Wells to investigate anything.