30% drop in TV ratings for the Colts

[deedub75]

I just heard that number on the local radio station. 

 

Is this an anomaly, or are the fans really fed up with this regime?

[Corndog]

Not really surprised,  but this is pretty much the norm for most teams that have disappointing seasons.  I think the only teams really immune to this are the Bears and Browns, as their fans have accepted mediocrity and failure. 

[Reboot]

The entirety of the NFL viewership is down.  This article from October covers many reasons why. 

http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2016/10/27/nfl-ratings-decline-football-fans-explain-viewership

 

I don't think the Colts specifically have any unique reason for lower viewership.  The product wasn't very good, election year, concussion discussions, over-officiated, ads, more ads, cost (I dropped Sunday Ticket from DirecTV for the fist time in forever - I just got tired of the $300+ a year, and then feeling obligated to spend every Sunday of the NFL season camped in front of the TV), and on and on.  We've seen the rise and fall of the big three sports on TV and attendance.  It will continue to ebb and flow.  The NFL seems to be entering a downturn though. 

 

 

[superrep1967]

11 minutes ago, deedub75 said:

I just heard that number on the local radio station. 

 

Is this an anomaly, or are the fans really fed up with this regime?

 

You've been listening to Grady and Big Joe...lol

[deedub75]

2 minutes ago, Dirty Mudflaps said:

The entirety of the NFL viewership is down.  This article from October covers many reasons why. 

http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2016/10/27/nfl-ratings-decline-football-fans-explain-viewership

 

I don't think the Colts specifically have any unique reason for lower viewership.  The product wasn't very good, election year, concussion discussions, over-officiated, ads, more ads, cost (I dropped Sunday Ticket from DirecTV for the fist time in forever - I just got tired of the $300+ a year, and then feeling obligated to spend every Sunday of the NFL season camped in front of the TV), and on and on.  We've seen the rise and fall of the big three sports on TV and attendance.  It will continue to ebb and flow.  The NFL seems to be entering a downturn though. 

 

 

 

This was local viewership and not on the national stage. I believe it is a direct result of the product on the field and local fans being fed up with this regime. 

[GhostofJohnnyU]

That's a pretty big drop.

Does anybody have "no-show" numbers?  That's where straight cash is lost in concessions and local bars, etc.  I couldn't give my tix away for Sunday, and I wasn't going to drive 2 hours and pay for parking to see that game.

[jvan1973]

18 minutes ago, deedub75 said:

I just heard that number on the local radio station. 

 

Is this an anomaly, or are the fans really fed up with this regime?

Is there a link?

[21isSuperman]

I think there are several reasons for it.  I don't know if any of them are specific to the Colts, but I think fans are getting tired of the current state of the NFL.  Players aren't allowed to have fun or even cough in the wrong direction.  Goodell's handling of player discipline has been incomprehensible to some, including how suspensions vary for marijuana compared to domestic violence, and how he handled the Deflategate stuff.  NFL games run over three hours, but most of that is commercial break.  Reffing is inconsistent and maddening.  The United States election was the focus of many people, so they didn't care to pay as much attention to football.  The NFL also made some bizarre decisions, like making some games only available on NFL Network, which people might not have.  There's an oversaturation of football during the week with games on three separate days; Thursday night football isn't that entertaining and is horrible for player safety.  There also aren't that many good teams.  Just last week, the scheduled games included Chicago vs. Minnesota, Arizona vs. LA, Indy vs. Jacksonville, and Buffalo vs. the Jets.  None of those games included a singe playoff team.  I'm not surprised the NFL his losing viewers.  They're trying so hard to appeal to the global market that the quality of games is decreasing.

[BProland85]

58 minutes ago, deedub75 said:

I just heard that number on the local radio station. 

 

Is this an anomaly, or are the fans really fed up with this regime?

 

I would hope Indy fans would make our frustration heard by not purchasing tickets or merchandise until Irsay cares to fix the direction of this team. 

[FanFromtheWasteland]

1 hour ago, Corndog said:

Not really surprised,  but this is pretty much the norm for most teams that have disappointing seasons.  I think the only teams really immune to this are the Bears and Browns, as their fans have accepted mediocrity and failure. 

And a lot of this fan base is well on their way to the same attitude

[deedub75]

4 minutes ago, 21isSuperman said:

I think there are several reasons for it.  I don't know if any of them are specific to the Colts, but I think fans are getting tired of the current state of the NFL.  Players aren't allowed to have fun or even cough in the wrong direction.  Goodell's handling of player discipline has been incomprehensible to some, including how suspensions vary for marijuana compared to domestic violence, and how he handled the Deflategate stuff.  NFL games run over three hours, but most of that is commercial break.  Reffing is inconsistent and maddening.  The United States election was the focus of many people, so they didn't care to pay as much attention to football.  The NFL also made some bizarre decisions, like making some games only available on NFL Network, which people might not have.  There's an oversaturation of football during the week with games on three separate days; Thursday night football isn't that entertaining and is horrible for player safety.  There also aren't that many good teams.  Just last week, the scheduled games included Chicago vs. Minnesota, Arizona vs. LA, Indy vs. Jacksonville, and Buffalo vs. the Jets.  None of those games included a singe playoff team.  I'm not surprised the NFL his losing viewers.  They're trying so hard to appeal to the global market that the quality of games is decreasing.

 

I agree with your assessment but as was mentioned on the radio, this was a 30% drop in local viewership. 

[AZColt11]

It's on Irsay IMHO.

[21isSuperman]

10 minutes ago, deedub75 said:

 

I agree with your assessment but as was mentioned on the radio, this was a 30% drop in local viewership. 

I don't know how that number compares to the NFL overall.  But I guess most of what I said applies to the Colts too.  Add in that the Colts didn't field a particularly competitive or exciting team and it could make for a greater drop in numbers for the Colts

[Corndog]

20 minutes ago, FanFromtheWasteland said:

And a lot of this fan base is well on their way to the same attitude

I would say this fan base is more comparable to the Bears than the Browns, without the massive demand for tickets even in losing seasons and a team in a major media market.   Going to Soldier Field is more about the event than the actual game, it's a sort of pilgrimage that is expected of you as a fan.

 

 But  Bears fans, like Colts fans currently, are split on their management and many have no problem criticizing their team, while others are complete homers.  Even though the Bears sell tickets, there is still some pressure to compete.  You can't fail for a long period of time in Chicago and keep your job, the media and fanbase will eat you alive.  The Browns have absolutely no pressure to compete as they have completely conditioned their fan base to losing. 

[jvan1973]

48 minutes ago, deedub75 said:

 

I agree with your assessment but as was mentioned on the radio, this was a 30% drop in local viewership. 

Yet,  They provided no source 

[tikyle]

If true, who really is surprised by this?

 

1. The teams superstar is not a "household name."  Most people outside of die hard football fans know what he looks like w/o a helmet on.

2. The Colts play a exciting brand of football........BUT, with how bad the pass protection is, it makes an explosive offense look like a sputtering car.

3. The roster has 0 names (outside of the QB) of guys people need to watch for nationally speaking.

4. The defense is putrid and boring and doesn't even have any big hits or stand out players.

5. It's Indianapolis.  I mean I will get flack for this but that's what it is.  If the team is not one of the best in the league (no matter what league NFL, NBA, NCAA, etc) no one cares.

[presto123]

 Blame it on drop in NFL viewership all you want, but Colts fans are becoming slowly disenchanted and attendance will be the next to suffer if Irsay doesn't wake up and fix this mess.

[jvan1973]

2 minutes ago, presto123 said:

 Blame it on drop in NFL viewership all you want, but Colts fans are becoming slowly disenchanted and attendance will be the next to suffer if Irsay doesn't wake up and fix this mess.

Attendance would be the first thing that would suffer

[Dudley Smith]

34 minutes ago, jvan1973 said:

Attendance would be the first thing that would suffer

 

I was at the game on Sunday. It did look like it was suffering.  Only looked to be about 75%-80%. Not what we are used to seeing. Granted, the game was meaningless and it was against the Jags.

 

Will be interesting to see what it looks like first thing next season.

[Clem-Dog]

Market-size is a myth created by the NBA and MLB.  The NFL thrives in cities like Green Bay and Pittsburgh because it controls and shares ad revenue.  It also proved that it doesn't need the LA market to prosper.  This is the type of dialogue you'll typically find on a Pacers message board, and rightfully so, but as it applies to the Colts it is irrelevant.  

[VaAllDay757]

Irsay is gonna lose money and plenty of fans if he keeps this stupid stuff he needs to get it together 

[throwing BBZ]

I`m a fan of Doyle.
 Not much else. The Irsay/Grigson screw ups at the top of the draft and in free agency have really hammered the Franchise.
 lol acquiring and developing many quality pieces to re pass our competition.
 

[Nostrils]

the product is suffering.  I completely understand less people watching.  

[SilentHill]

Well I haven't watched a Colts football game since halftime vs the Texans.

 

But, in the interest of full disclosure, I closed on a new house 12/8. After a half of football vs the Texans, I decided my weekend time would be better spent elsewhere.

[NannyMcafee]

5 hours ago, deedub75 said:

 

This was local viewership and not on the national stage. I believe it is a direct result of the product on the field and local fans being fed up with this regime. 

 

It will continue to go down as long as pagano is head coach of this team. The fact that your head coach makes excuses, avoids answering questions about the talent on the team, says a lot. A good coach is a success without talent. Yeah I know that you don't have a HOF caliber coach every day, but pagano has continued to put this team in a position to fail. The disapointment of the season isn't the record, but the fact that we are retaining someone who is showing lack of progress in even putting Luck in a position to succeed shows a lack of caring both from the owner and the GM. 

[jet1968]

Winning would be a quick cure for tv ratings for the Colts

[jameszeigler834]

2 minutes ago, jet1968 said:

Winning would be a quick cure for tv ratings for the Colts

Ya but you need people that know what they are doing first and they don't.

[BOTT]

4 hours ago, Dudley Smith said:

 

I was at the game on Sunday. It did look like it was suffering.  Only looked to be about 75%-80%. Not what we are used to seeing. Granted, the game was meaningless and it was against the Jags.

 

Will be interesting to see what it looks like first thing next season.

If they start slowly, it could get ugly fast.

[Superman]

There's still no source for this supposed 30% drop in TV ratings...

[sfergson727]

I know I stopped watching due to being fed up.  I listened to the radio broadcast because Bob Lamey could make a cereal eating contest interesting.  I'll be real sad when Bob hangs up the mic.

[BOTT]

4 minutes ago, sfergson727 said:

I know I stopped watching due to being fed up.  I listened to the radio broadcast because Bob Lamey could make a cereal eating contest interesting.  I'll be real sad when Bob hangs up the mic.

I know I'm in the minority, but I can't stand Lamey.

[sfergson727]

Just now, BOTT said:

I know I'm in the minority, but I can't stand Lamey.

He's not for everybody.  I grew up listening to him when the Colts were horrid, back when they first came to Indy...we've been through a lot of terrible football, adversity makes the bond I guess.

[oldunclemark]

11 hours ago, deedub75 said:

I just heard that number on the local radio station. 

 

Is this an anomaly, or are the fans really fed up with this regime?

I doubt that's true....

Our game with Green Bay was high-rated and our game with Oakland was, too

[BOTT]

7 minutes ago, oldunclemark said:

I doubt that's true....

Our game with Green Bay was high-rated and our game with Oakland was, too

Nationally or locally?  I know,the packers colts didn't do well nationally.

[oldunclemark]

             I heard that NFL rating were up in the final weeks and our game with Green bay was a highlight.

Even if that's not so...

I'm having a hard time believing our TV ratings are down 30% from last year when Andrew Luck didnt play half the season..

 

 

[oldunclemark]

Ratings rebounded after the Presidential election..

 

..The Seattle-New England Sunday night game was the highest rated game in 5 years...

[ACanOfWOW]

not surprised.

 

the offense this year was completely unwatchable. i know everyone was trying hard but there were so many momentum killing holding penalties, false starts & sacks allowed. even when those things didn't happen, the offensive plays were just completely baffling and out of touch with the game situation. i am blessed with being able to afford DirecTV's NFL Sunday Ticket to watch the Colts but if i wasn't as big of a Colts fan, I probably would have cancelled my subscription. 

 

elevate Joe Philbin to OC

[BOTT]

33 minutes ago, oldunclemark said:

Ratings rebounded after the Presidential election..

 

..The Seattle-New England Sunday night game was the highest rated game in 5 years...

That has nothing to do with local ratings for the colts.

[southwest1]

14 hours ago, 21isSuperman said:

There's an oversaturation of football during the week with games on three separate days; Thursday night football isn't that entertaining and is horrible for player safety. 

Yes, I realize I sound like a broken record & yes, I will own that I detest the creation of TNF. However, 21 is exactly right in my estimation. 

 

I know; I know TNF isn't going anywhere. I accept that fact--reluctantly with resistance. 

[lollygagger8]

The NFL is running itself into the ground with the refs. Get some real ones instead of: