The National Football League officially began its season tonight with a match-up between the New York Giants and the Dallas Cowboys. Early ratings for the contest won’t be out until tomorrow, but it’s a safe bet to say the NBC telecast won its timeslot. The season kickoff game each of the past two years has topped twenty-seven million, and with such beloved franchises involved this time, it wouldn’t be shocking to see an improvement.
The NFL has long ruled Sunday afternoons, Sunday evenings and Monday nights, but in recent years, the league has started branching out a bit into other timeslots. Today’s Wednesday game was an attempt not to make viewers choose between President Obama’s speech and football, but beyond that, the league will once again feature Thursday games throughout the season and some Saturday games near the end.
On the one hand, this move toward increased exposure is frustrating because it ruins a bit of the specialness of teams playing on Monday Night and Sunday Night Football. On the other hand, it allows fans a chance to see more games and a greater number of teams during the season.
Given all the success the league ahs had by branching out, it’s very unlikely the NFL will reduce the number of days it plays. In fact, it’s likely discussions will soon be under way to pick up more days.
What do you think? Should the NFL play more games on weeknights? Let us know your thoughts by voting in the poll below…
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