If the NFL wants to increase viewership and add new fans, there’s a simple solution that might help them out regarding when the Super Bowl is played.
No, the solution isn’t adding flashier commercials, better entertainment, or some other hoopla to a game that doesn’t lack plenty of glitz and glamour.
Instead of all of that, why not play the Super Bowl on Saturday night instead of on Sunday?
Many NFL fans, even ones without a favorite team in the big game, watch the Super Bowl. Some people tune in just for the zany and often-hilarious commercials that grace every stoppage in play. But some fans can’t afford to stay up late to finish watching the game. When Monday morning rolls around, they have to go back to work.
Despite the slightly lengthened NCAA football season thanks to the addition of a playoff system, there is virtually no chance of there ever being a college football game on the same weekend as the Super Bowl. If the NFL somehow adds another week or another round to its playoff format, it would be even less likely.
What else is stopping the NFL from shifting its marquee event to the middle of the weekend? It’s certainly not quality programming on other networks. The viewers of those shows might be displaced, but the NFL’s bottom line wouldn’t decrease by moving it to Saturday evening.
The NFL traditionally hasn’t occupied a Saturday time slot because it would directly challenge college football for most of the season. The Super Bowl, however, is in a “dead spot” in the television and sports calendar. The NBA and NHL are in the middle of their seasons, college football has wrapped up, and college basketball doesn’t have a signature event until March. Surely the networks could make the room on Saturday if they’re already making it on Sunday.
The NFL certainly doesn’t want to directly challenge prime-time programming, which isn’t a part of the Sunday evening schedule. But wouldn’t advertisers find a time slot for a Saturday game more valuable than one on Sunday night when some people have already tuned out and gone to bed?
Super Bowl Saturday is good for the fans and good for the game.
Moving the Super Bowl to Saturday could also make things more interesting for a Pro Bowl-type event. The league could turn Sunday into a Pro Bowl day. Instead of a game that players skip, it would make sense to invite the league’s top talent to participate in a skills competition that allows them to have some fun the way the NHL does. Instead of MLB’s home run derby, have a punt, pass, and kick competition. Have it at the same site as the Super Bowl to save time and allow the Super Bowl players selected to participate.
The day could also feature an old timer’s game, the way the NHL does before some of its outdoor winter games. People might actually show up or tune in to see John Elway and Brett Favre duke it out for fun, or Emmitt Smith take a handoff from Troy Aikman again. They can even play with the Pro Bowl’s notoriously relaxed rules so that nobody gets hurt. It would instantly be more entertaining than any Pro Bowl played in recent memory.
While they’re at it, they could have some former coaches come in and call the shots. Don Shula versus Bill Parcells? Bill Cowher versus Jimmy Johnson? It could end up being quite a fun afternoon of football.
Best of all, an event like this the day after the Super Bowl allows the NFL to celebrate its product and its historical traditions while saying goodbye to the old standard of Super Bowl Sunday. It ties players like John Elway to Russell Wilson, Emmitt Smith to Eddie Lacy, and even Antonio Brown to Tim Brown.
If the NFL followed through with this plan, they would give Super Bowl fans a day to recover and sleep in while enjoying the rest of their weekend. And at the same time, they’d be able to watch their favorite stars of today mix it up with the heroes of yesterday. It’s truly a win-win for everyone involved.
