Query; why are NFL ratings/attendance etc declining?

[flgreen]

19 minutes ago, Jet9 said:

I would agree if a window washer or crab fisherman had issues well after retirement. 

They do...............if they don't  make one mistake in 40 years of work, and don't get to retire

[56mehl56]

2 minutes ago, flgreen said:

Why is tailgating the place to drink to reduce drunken violence?  That's where most of the drunken  A-Holes's do most of their drinking.  

Tailgating is a place for fans to get together pregame to enjoy food , family , friends and yes drink. A-Hole's are going to be A-Holes regardless of how many and what rules are in place. If you eliminate tailgating  they'll drink at home/bars and drive drunk to the games.  Let's stop making rules that penalize the innocent while not negating the issue that's trying to be solved.

[56mehl56]

20 minutes ago, Jet9 said:

I would agree if a window washer or crab fisherman had issues well after retirement. 

Many occupations come with hazards , construction workers ( knees, backs) , painters, mechanics, firemen(exposed to fumes) . Again each person must weigh out the cons ( long term health issues ) , vs the rewards( pay).

[flgreen]

27 minutes ago, 56mehl56 said:

Tailgating is a place for fans to get together pregame to enjoy food , family , friends and yes drink. A-Hole's are going to be A-Holes regardless of how many and what rules are in place. If you eliminate tailgating  they'll drink at home/bars and drive drunk to the games.  Let's stop making rules that penalize the innocent while not negating the issue that's trying to be solved.

I guess I was mistaken but I thought that one of the  issues that are being discussed in this thread is why attendance at games has dropped.  For me, and I like to drink, is the drunks creating a violent atmosphere at the game.  Tailgates by many are as you say, a place to eat, share time with friends, and have a few drinks.  Unfortunately a significant % of people drink as mush as they can hold in the parking lot because they are to cheap to spend the $12 in the stadium.  

The food should be allowed, but there aren't many public places you can just sit and get shyt faced in public.

The drunks still have to drive home after drinking their 12 pack in the parking lot, and another 6 EXPENSIVE  beers in the stadium.  

The at the game experience  is the main reason attendance has dropped.  @SAR I  is right the parking lots are often a disgrace because of the drunks   

[bostonmajet]

1 hour ago, batman10023 said:

i haven't felt this way at Met Life stadium.  i did feel it many times in Giants stadium.  my wife didn't feel safe going to the games all the time and thought there was way too much antics/drunken behavior.  now she has no problem going to the game and wouldn't mind me taking our kids to the game.

perhaps the difference is then i was second to last row in upper deck and now i am in the club section.  

I once had to break up a fight in the luxury box in Gillette. Two years before that, the host of the luxury box had to ask some 'fans' to not be so vulgar and leave us alone. Then, on the way out, some drunken pats fan called my sister a name (as we were walking out of the special entrance to the special parking lot).

Money doesn't make people less of a jack@$$; they can often be entitled pricks who think the world revolves around them. I used to travel quite a bit for business, and would often travel first class; some of the biggest d*** you would ever want to meet

[bostonmajet]

Some of the rule changes that bug me the most aren't about safety, they are designed to keep scoring high (like the holding/PI stuff that happens on every play). They are changing the nature of the game (from balance between offense and defense) to attract fans with shorter attention spans, fantasy football, etc. Hey, it worked for a while and they thought we would get this new group of fans and the die hards will still follow us. The problem is that many of the 'new' fans have moved on and the die hard fans aren't so die hard and are getting older.

[Jetster]

1 hour ago, flgreen said:

I guess I was mistaken but I thought that one of the  issues that are being discussed in this thread is why attendance at games has dropped.  For me, and I like to drink, is the drunks creating a violent atmosphere at the game.  Tailgates by many are as you say, a place to eat, share time with friends, and have a few drinks.  Unfortunately a significant % of people drink as mush as they can hold in the parking lot because they are to cheap to spend the $12 in the stadium.  

The food should be allowed, but there aren't many public places you can just sit and get shyt faced in public.

The drunks still have to drive home after drinking their 12 pack in the parking lot, and another 6 EXPENSIVE  beers in the stadium.  

The at the game experience  is the main reason attendance has dropped.  @SAR I  is right the parking lots are often a disgrace because of the drunks   

I did a Sunday night game vs the Pats once. I could not believe the drunken azzholes everywhere! Guys pushing Porto potties with people in them, a guy threw up in front of me heading in, just wiped his mouth a headed in. Guys saying disgusted vulgar sh*t to girls, that is the crux of the fan experience and why attendance is down, Of course if the Jets were great, the place would be packed & probably not as bad, because there would be a lot less opposing fans.

[batman10023]

1 hour ago, bostonmajet said:

I once had to break up a fight in the luxury box in Gillette. Two years before that, the host of the luxury box had to ask some 'fans' to not be so vulgar and leave us alone. Then, on the way out, some drunken pats fan called my sister a name (as we were walking out of the special entrance to the special parking lot).

Money doesn't make people less of a jack@$$; they can often be entitled pricks who think the world revolves around them. I used to travel quite a bit for business, and would often travel first class; some of the biggest d*** you would ever want to meet

will there be D**Ks - yep.  but for the most part the crowd is fine.  if anything it's too quiet.  the percentage of "problem" patrons is less now than it was 10 years ago in the 2nd to last row.   and i am 10 years older now and more annoyed about "problem"patrons - i.e. would complain much more now.   so in my view it's a very big difference.

[batman10023]

1 hour ago, bostonmajet said:

Some of the rule changes that bug me the most aren't about safety, they are designed to keep scoring high (like the holding/PI stuff that happens on every play). They are changing the nature of the game (from balance between offense and defense) to attract fans with shorter attention spans, fantasy football, etc. Hey, it worked for a while and they thought we would get this new group of fans and the die hards will still follow us. The problem is that many of the 'new' fans have moved on and the die hard fans aren't so die hard and are getting older.

agree with this point.  you can make the game safer without having to increase scoring.  

[Super Bowl before I die]

3 hours ago, flgreen said:

Why is tailgating the place to drink to reduce drunken violence?  That's where most of the drunken  A-Holes's do most of their drinking.  

And they sober up during the game .

[flgreen]

2 hours ago, Super Bowl before I die said:

And they sober up during the game .

No they don't.  They drink as many luke warm $12 beers as they can afford.  Alcohol has clouded their better judgement, and they'll spend a whole weeks  paycheck on the warm beer. 

[ZachEY]

The thing I hate is how these pampered athletes are always getting special treatment.  I bet we don't even execute them if they refuse to stand for the Two Minutes Hate.

[NoBowles]

A few have already touched on this, but the rule changes have lead to officiating that can completely change the outcome of games. And the biggest problem with that is the inconsistency.  The two biggest areas that frustrate the hell out of me are offensive holding, and defensive backs holding or illegal contact. So many NFL games are determined by a few plays either way, and calling, or not calling these penalties consistently have changed the outcome of way too many games. Refs are human, and I get it, but its become a huge problem for me. I will watch a play where a ref is standing right in front of an Olineman choke holding a DLineman from behind who had him beat, and not call it, and then call some ticky tack BS on the other team. It happens way too often. And, it seems like the NFL darlings like the Pats, Giants, Steelers, Packers, etc. are often on the better side of these calls.

I have no problem with the rules that are geared towards safety at all, I don't mind the defenseless receiver calls, although they are inconsistent as all hell, I don't mind the QB protection, although that too is inconsistent. I think the game of football can still be awesome with rules geared towards safety, but the BS they brought in to generate more scoring and control games is a deal breaker for me.

[bostonmajet]

11 hours ago, NoBowles said:

A few have already touched on this, but the rule changes have lead to officiating that can completely change the outcome of games. And the biggest problem with that is the inconsistency.  The two biggest areas that frustrate the hell out of me are offensive holding, and defensive backs holding or illegal contact. So many NFL games are determined by a few plays either way, and calling, or not calling these penalties consistently have changed the outcome of way too many games. Refs are human, and I get it, but its become a huge problem for me. I will watch a play where a ref is standing right in front of an Olineman choke holding a DLineman from behind who had him beat, and not call it, and then call some ticky tack BS on the other team. It happens way too often. And, it seems like the NFL darlings like the Pats, Giants, Steelers, Packers, etc. are often on the better side of these calls.

I have no problem with the rules that are geared towards safety at all, I don't mind the defenseless receiver calls, although they are inconsistent as all hell, I don't mind the QB protection, although that too is inconsistent. I think the game of football can still be awesome with rules geared towards safety, but the BS they brought in to generate more scoring and control games is a deal breaker for me.

The other one in my mind about consistency is roughing the passer ... they will pull a Jets QB down by the helmet, but call it when Brady trips in the vicinity of a Jet. 

Of course, I like that 2 taunting calls can get your ejected, but 3 or 4 cheap shots don't. Cause taunting is way more hurtful than head-hunting; Of course kicking is instant ejection, but not when they kicked the Jets receiver this weekend (I think it was Kearse), or when Belacheat grabbed the official.

This is why some people call the game 'rigged'. It appears when a 'favored' team needs it the most, a flag will come in....

[ECURB]

Peaks and valleys... Things never stay steady

NFL is still the best sport to watch live

[Paradis]

On 9/23/2017 at 3:07 PM, DoubleDown said:

The generation that accounted for the biggest boost in popularity and ratings is growing up and starting families.  Priorities change.

Fantasy football has turned the casual fan into a fan of individual players, not a fan of a specific team. Why dedicate yourself to a team and sit through 3 hours of commercial filled games when you can watch the Redzone channel or check your smart phone for a quick update on your fantasy league scores? It's too easy to turn a game off and get the information you really care about through alternative means.

I think there's more truth to this than is being given credit/recognition for... generational interest in the sport has shifted. I totally feel the redzone vs 3 hours riddled w/ commercials. 

[Paradis]

thanks for sharing everyone. 

[Jet9]

On 9/28/2017 at 7:44 PM, ECURB said:

 

NFL is still the best sport to watch live

 

The NHL says 'Hi'.

[Dunnie]

I agree with most of the points here. However, some of you guys basically calling the concussion issue an issue for wusses is absurd. These guys are mostly in their 20s and early 30s. They're somebody's kids, they're also somebody's dad. Even if they make a billion dollars a year, safety and long-term health are important. More important than a game. 

 I understand where you are coming from ... but the flip side ...  Does anyone care if floyd mayweather gets concussed ?... isn't he someone's kid? Once you hit the stratosphere payday type salaries, people start caring less. Because if someone said they would pay them 20 million to get concussed ... they would do it in a heartbeat.  And these guys keep asking for more $$$ ... partly because it's a dangerous game by definition (or was).

 Concussions suck ... CTE sucks ... unless you fix it with equipment they should be thought of as a risk that is inherent to the sport. Partially justifying the ludicrous salaries.

 Football already is starting to look like flag compared game of the 70s/80s. (injuries happen in flag football btw)

 

People don't want to watch 3 minutes of football and then 5 minutes of commercials either.

 

 Things keep going they way they are ... people will eventually find something else to entertain themselves with on Sundays.

 

Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

 

 

 

 

 

[Bugg]

5 hours ago, Dunnie said:

 I understand where you are coming from ... but the flip side ...  Does anyone care if floyd mayweather gets concussed ?... isn't he someone's kid? Once you hit the stratosphere payday type salaries, people start caring less. Because if someone said they would pay them 20 million to get concussed ... they would do it in a heartbeat.  And these guys keep asking for more $$$ ... partly because it's a dangerous game by definition (or was).

 Concussions suck ... CTE sucks ... unless you fix it with equipment they should be thought of as a risk that is inherent to the sport. Partially justifying the ludicrous salaries.

 Football already is starting to look like flag compared game of the 70s/80s. (injuries happen in flag football btw)

 

People don't want to watch 3 minutes of football and then 5 minutes of commercials either.

 

 Things keep going they way they are ... people will eventually find something else to entertain themselves with on Sundays.

 

Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

 

 

 

 

 

You cannot really fix the equipment. The helmet being safety equipment is a delusion, but that's not changing. The sport is designed to be an 11 on 11 collision. And in comparison due to training, nutrition, other stuff  the players are bigger and stronger. In 1970s, there weren't more than 2 or 3 300 pounders league wide, and they were fat, not built. Now every OL and interior DL is 300+ and what ever their gut can bench press a Honda. And LBs built like OL guys back then, but cut and fast as cats.   

The commercial thing is true though. Life has sped up. Teens and 20 somethings have a phone in their hand 24/7. Even as an old guy,  watch TV with a macbook right there. Personally I have no patience to watch MLB. Part of that is the guys I grew up watching like Mariano Rivera are gone. But a bigger PArt is there are LONG INTERMINABLE STRETCHES WHEN NOTHING HAPPENS. Not sure the NFL and it's advertisers have grasped NOBODY with a TV remote and phone in front of them is watching a commercial. Give soccer credit; the edge in game ads work way better. But they're wedded to doing business as they have always done it. What happens when Bud, Coors, Tostitos, Ford and Chevy decide sports ads make no sense? 

 

[sciond]

All the above, NFL ticket, behavior, kneeling.