Are the Bears a ratings hit or something? (Number of primetime games)

[buffalo34]

I swear, for a team that's been mediocre (and that's being generous) over the past decade, normally sneaking into the playoffs because of freak accidents in the division (like Rodgers injuries), they seem to get a fair amount of primetime games every year. Are they still riding on that 85 Bears magic or something? Do they pull in good ratings because of their name? I don't get it. I watched the first couple of drives to see how the game would fare out, and when it went largely as predicted, I muted the TV and just kept it on in the background while I did other things. And 99% of Bears/Packers primetime games involve 45-10 Packers blowouts.

 

I have ragged on the Cowboys getting a ton of primetime games when they've only won two or three playoff games in the last 25 years, but they normally have a decent team and you are always pulling for them to lose. The Bears have neither of those characteristics.

 

Speaking of primetime, the Bills will be on a TV near you for the next month (Monday Night @ 49ers, Sunday Night vs. Steelers, Saturday Night @ Broncos, Monday Night @ Patriots, and it's always possible the Week 17 game vs. the Dolphins could be flexed into a national audience if the division/playoff spot comes down to that game).

[NewColtsFan]

3 minutes ago, buffalo34 said:

I swear, for a team that's been mediocre (and that's being generous) over the past decade, normally sneaking into the playoffs because of freak accidents in the division (like Rodgers injuries), they seem to get a fair amount of primetime games every year. Are they still riding on that 85 Bears magic or something? Do they pull in good ratings because of their name? I don't get it. I watched the first couple of drives to see how the game would fare out, and when it went largely as predicted, I muted the TV and just kept it on in the background while I did other things. And 99% of Bears/Packers primetime games involve 45-10 Packers blowouts.

 

I have ragged on the Cowboys getting a ton of primetime games when they've only won two or three playoff games in the last 25 years, but they normally have a decent team and you are always pulling for them to lose. The Bears have neither of those characteristics.

 

Speaking of primetime, the Bills will be on a TV near you for the next month (Monday Night @ 49ers, Sunday Night vs. Steelers, Saturday Night @ Broncos, Monday Night @ Patriots, and it's always possible the Week 17 game vs. the Dolphins could be flexed into a national audience if the division/playoff spot comes down to that game).

I don’t mean to offend, but.....

 

The population of Buffalo is roughly 255,000.

 

The population of Chicago is roughly 2.66 million.   Our nation’s third largest city.  Plus, they were playing Green Bay, a team that historically gets good TV ratings even though it is much smaller than Buffalo.  It’s the smallest city to have a major sports franchise. 

TV ratings are, in part,  why Indianapolis doesn’t get many National games unless they have someone like Peyton Manning or Andrew Luck. 
 

It’s not just about the win-loss records. 

[buffalo34]

I get they're from one of the biggest TV markets in the country, but you knew that game was going to be a non-competitive snoozefest before it even started. I generally watch every Sunday Night game available, but I can tell you that both Sunday Night games that I largely tuned out of involved Packers-Bears contests (I wanna say there was a game in 2013 or 2014 where the Packers dropped 50+ on the Bears on Sunday Night and you could feel it was going to happen before the game even started).

[NewColtsFan]

You didn’t know it was going to be a snooze fest when the schedule was made, I think around May.   Sometimes it just turns out that way and all the NFL can do is point to the TV ratings.   Ultimately, they are important for everyone. 

[King Colt]

Ever notice with every GB/ CHI game the media goes back to the first games these two teams ever played despite the fact that absolutely no one give a rats behind about it.

[Chrisaaron1023]

I tend to agree.. I know this is unfeasible with scheduling. But wouldn't it be so cool to have all primetime games flexed?

[Myles]

It's a population thing is all.   Being it is also a "rivalry" helps as well.    Bummer way the game went, but I usually tune in to rivalry games. 

[Nesjan3]

Bears looked better than the Eagles tonight

[TimetobringDfence!]

23 hours ago, buffalo34 said:

I swear, for a team that's been mediocre (and that's being generous) over the past decade, normally sneaking into the playoffs because of freak accidents in the division (like Rodgers injuries), they seem to get a fair amount of primetime games every year. Are they still riding on that 85 Bears magic or something? Do they pull in good ratings because of their name? I don't get it. I watched the first couple of drives to see how the game would fare out, and when it went largely as predicted, I muted the TV and just kept it on in the background while I did other things. And 99% of Bears/Packers primetime games involve 45-10 Packers blowouts.

 

I have ragged on the Cowboys getting a ton of primetime games when they've only won two or three playoff games in the last 25 years, but they normally have a decent team and you are always pulling for them to lose. The Bears have neither of those characteristics.

 

Speaking of primetime, the Bills will be on a TV near you for the next month (Monday Night @ 49ers, Sunday Night vs. Steelers, Saturday Night @ Broncos, Monday Night @ Patriots, and it's always possible the Week 17 game vs. the Dolphins could be flexed into a national audience if the division/playoff spot comes down to that game).

I think the league gives prime time games to average teams with weak fan bases. Teams like the Colts have a strong fanbase that always gets rating even at 1pm no matter what. Teams like the Jets or Bears have fans that dont tune in with out it being a better time slot.

[TimetobringDfence!]

23 hours ago, NewColtsFan said:

I don’t mean to offend, but.....

 

The population of Buffalo is roughly 255,000.

 

The population of Chicago is roughly 2.66 million.   Our nation’s third largest city.  Plus, they were playing Green Bay, a team that historically gets good TV ratings even though it is much smaller than Buffalo.  It’s the smallest city to have a major sports franchise. 

TV ratings are, in part,  why Indianapolis doesn’t get many National games unless they have someone like Peyton Manning or Andrew Luck. 
 

It’s not just about the win-loss records. 

Are game against the Pack was the second most watched. I think the NFL give fair weather viewers better slots to help get the most viewers tuned in. Colts fans watch no matter what time.