The Monday Night Football doubleheader is no more.
On Tuesday, NFL executive vice president of media distribution Hans Schroeder told media at the NFL’s annual league meetings that the league would return to airing one Monday night game each week, ending a period of experimentation with the timeframe.
In recent years, the league would sometimes air two games on Monday nights. In some cases, the games would air back-to-back, but in others, they would air concurrently. The league seems to have decided that splitting its audience’s attention wasn’t worth the juice.
“When we did the deal (with Disney) five years ago, we thought adding two games on Monday night would be a great thing for fans,” Schroeder said. “It was more free football that was sort of outside of a Sunday afternoon. I think we collectively struggled and realized that fans felt that they were conflicted to choose between those games.”
Last season, there were MNF doubleheaders during Week 2, Week 4, Week 6, and Week 7. Some doubleheaders attempted to cater to audiences in different time zones, while others were about staggering, compelling matchups. Often, the ratings reflected a lack of audience interest, either because viewers didn’t want to stay up late or because they weren’t interested in the games themselves.
The change might also be due to an evolution in the league’s interest in other opportunities and timeslots. This season’s opening game will take place on a Wednesday night. In recent years, the league has added games on Black Friday and Christmas Day, and may potentially add a Thanksgiving Eve game this season. The spreading out of the schedule real estate means less need to stuff Monday nights.
“When we look at the calendar, and look at other natural nights that could serve our fans and deliver unique-sized audiences, that’s a night that jumps out to us,” Schroeder said. “Thanksgiving is about football, family, friends increasingly, and we think we’re a big part of that. You saw that last year with some of the numbers on Thursday, and really throughout the year. Great numbers on Black Friday, too.
“We think this is the natural way to continue to grow things, but we’re going to look, and like I said earlier, we want to hear what the market thinks about it. There are obviously a number of different options and ways and pieces, ways the puzzle could come together. But we think that’s a super interesting one, as far as an opportunity for this season.”
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.