Why the NFL Kills All Pro Sports in Television Ratings

The NFL is king. Or, at least it’s king on television. No matter your sports allegiance, it’s an undeniable fact. To put this in perspective, the Conference Championship games this past weekend averaged 53.7 million, making it the most watched Conference Championship Sunday since 1982. The Giants-Niners game on FOX drew 57.6 million viewers to rank as the third most-watched conference championship, ever. The Ravens, Patriots game pulled in 48.7 million on CBS. What did Game 6 of the World Series last season draw? 21.06 million viewers, or less than half the Conference Championship Sunday average. When I published my article for Baseball Prospectus last week (see Selig’s To-Do List), one commenter declared that Selig should be blamed for allowing the NFL’s ascension to surpass baseball on television. It’s not Selig’s fault. It’s an awful lot about timing. What I mean is this: the growth in the NFL’s popularity can be tied closely to the television becoming a commonplace househol...