NFL ratings have dropped an average of 12 percent in the 2016 season so far, and officials of the league are not entirely sure why.
“We don’t dismiss any theory, if you want to call it that,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told Gary Myers on WFAN’s "Chalk Talk," NBC Sports reported. Myers listed several possible factors for the ratings drop, including the election cycle, fans tired of players’ off-field conduct, too many penalties, and the national anthem protests started by Colin Kaepernick this season.
Just a few days ago, Goodell denied the national anthem protests were having any impact, but a new Seton Hall poll conducted Oct. 24-26 showed the protests were the top reason listed by participants for the decline, CBS Sports reported. The presidential campaign, handling of domestic violence cases, and and having games on too many days were other top reasons cited in the poll.
"There is no single factor here, no one fixable thing for the NFL to act on," director of the poll Rick Gentile said, CBS reported. "But it is somewhat remarkable that the impact of the national anthem protest seems to hold, given that the action occurs pregame and isn’t even televised."
Goodell stated that for prime-time viewership, the NFL’s ratings are up 27 percent while television's overall prime-time ratings are down 36 percent.
"What we want to do is figure out how to engage our fans in the platforms they want to engage on and how do we engage them longer," he said, NBC Sports reported. "The media landscape is going through some very fundamental changes."
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