As the Kansas City Chiefs franchise won the AFC for a third consecutive year, CBS Sports attained a record number of viewers for its broadcast of the conference title match against the Buffalo Bills. The company averaged 57.7 million viewers, which is indicative of the largest audience on record for an AFC Championship Game and achieved a 4% year-over-year increase. Moreover, the game had the largest gap of audience from the NFC Championship Game recorded since 1996, attaining 13.5 million more viewers than the Philadelphia Eagles’ victory over the Washington Commanders. Bob Fescoe, morning show co-host on 96.5 The Fan, recognized the phenomenon surrounding the Chiefs and affirmed that the team’s playoff games are the only ones registering yearly increases.
With quarterback Patrick Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce and head coach Andy Reid trying to secure a Super Bowl championship next Sunday and make history in the process, Fescoe acknowledged the unique nature surrounding games for the team throughout the year. Over the last several weeks, there have been complaints from opposing football fans pertaining to the team, alleging that officials rule in their favor. Nonetheless, he also realized that the team is accruing record numbers in prime time and national viewership windows.
“They are the product that everybody wants to see, and that’s what, I think, some of these folks don’t seemingly understand,” Fescoe said on Wednesday morning’s edition of Fescoe and Dusty. “Like, ‘Oh, the Chiefs keep winning.’ As they keep winning, everybody keeps losing.”
Part of the reason Fescoe believes the league and its media partners experienced some yearly viewership declines had to do with people not being used to watching full football games. Conversely, he explained that people watch the games on NFL RedZone, a channel that does not include commercials and highlights multiple games simultaneously with key action. Moreover, he does not think there were many great teams from the perspective of a football fan in the playoffs this season.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about the Chiefs,” Fescoe said. “They are the bell cow of the NFL, and all they do is bring viewers to the television set, so until that stops, the Chiefs are going to be sitting on top for a very long time.”
Dusty Likins, the co-host of the morning drive program, emphasized that there are three different reasons people watch Chiefs games. Delineating the rationale into hate watching, rivalry watching or love watching, all of it coalesces into stellar viewership for games that features the team. The Chiefs were on prime time television six times this past season, the maximum permitted under an NFL franchise, and was also in standalone windows in the late-afternoon timeslot as well. FOX Sports is preparing to broadcast Super Bowl LIX next Sunday from New Orleans, La. as the Chiefs look to win a third consecutive league championship.
“I think they have expanded their fanbase, but there’s always going to be people who are going to root against this football team,” Fescoe said. “I’m sure the majority of America is probably going to be rooting for Philadelphia in this Super Bowl. It’s not exactly two teams that America loves at this point in time, but I think the hatred for the Chiefs may spill over, and I think there’s probably going to be more people rooting for the Philadelphia Eagles to win this Super Bowl because there’s a lot at stake for Philly as much as there is for Kansas City in this game, and people are just always tired of teams that win.”
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