The Real Winner Of The Brett Favre Trade, CBS

Saturday, August 09, 2008


I know the Brett Favre stuff is finally settling down, and that you probably don't want anymore piled on, but I found this angle pretty interesting. CBS killed in the ratings game last year on the shoulders of the record breaking Patriots. Almost every game they played received a ton of viewers up until the end of the year when they had to play the Jets and Dolphins, before the Giants game. If the Pats had any other good teams in their division they would have destroyed ratings records.

Enter on, Brett Lorenzo Favre....

Unless Favre fails to make even a middling improvement in the Jets' 4-12 record in 2007, CBS can look forward to a nice ratings bump, at least early in the season.

"Even if the Jets aren't good, they become that much more interesting to watch in New York, if nowhere else," said Rick Gentile, a former veep at CBS Sports who is currently director of the Seton Hall Sports Poll. "Compared to what they've had, they now have something to watch."

Citing CBS as a "clear beneficiary" of the deal, he speculated that "New York's ratings could go up 15%, and 15% of a 10 million person market is a nice chunk." In any event, he added, "It will improve it by some percentage, and some percentage of the New York market is just big numbers. So the advertisers have to be ecstatic."

The Jets are currently scheduled to play only two games on national television, a Monday nighter on ESPN at San Diego on Sept. 22 and a Thursday-night game Nov. 13 vs. their archrivals the Patriots on the NFL Network.
In fact every single network wins out. Now NBC can use Favre's Jets as a flex option after the Cowboys, Pats, and Colts six game primetime windows have been used up. The Jets still provided some crappy matchups near the end of the season (Dolphins and Bills), but there's still the option for NBC to use games against the Seahawks and Broncos (who beat Favre in Super Bowl XXXII), if CBS doesn't protect them.

The Pats and Jets have also already been bumped up to CBS' 4:15 slot in week two. Now if they could work on getting the craptastic Ravens off my TV every Sunday (I know it's not happening, but a boy can dream right?).

Brett Favre frenzy hits New York (Variety)

11 Comments:

makes sense. plus the dolphins improved with the brett favre deal, freeing up chad pennington and him signing with the dolphins. i know he's nothing special, but he's half-decent and better than what they had.

Anonymous said...
Aug 9, 2008, 1:55:00 PM  

I cant wait to watch the Pats pummel that hillbilly.

Unknown said...
Aug 9, 2008, 2:04:00 PM  

Uh, Favre beat the Patriots, not the Broncos...

Anonymous said...
Aug 9, 2008, 2:05:00 PM  

The Variety story includes a scoop: CBS may switch its primary Week 1 telecast from Chiefs-Patriots to Jets-Dolphins. That switch is now very likely as Chad Pennington -- whom the Jets cut to make room for Favre -- has signed with Miami.

Also, the NFL scheduled Patriots-Jets for 4:15 ET in Week 2 because the Giants play at 1 ET that week.

Anonymous said...
Aug 9, 2008, 2:06:00 PM  

Great call Anon. The Dolphins also have the Parcells angle and the Bills really aren't that bad at all. The problem is that the Pats are so much better than everyone else.

Aug 9, 2008, 2:19:00 PM  

Correct Anon...Favre lost in XXXII to the Broncos. Mixed the two up.

Aug 9, 2008, 2:22:00 PM  

"In fact every single network wins out."

except for FOX

-dan

Anonymous said...
Aug 9, 2008, 3:08:00 PM  

@-dan:

It gives Fox more of an opportunity to focus on the "up-and-coming" teams like the Lions, Falcons, 49ers & Rams. That or more 4:15 NFC East games.

ESPN's MNF won't be doing handstands, either. 49ers-Cardinals Week 10? Packers-Bears Week 16? Praying Cleveland doesn't go backwards in an even tougher conference?

Aug 9, 2008, 3:46:00 PM  

I had Rick as a professor at Seton Hall. He knows his stuff and from taking his class I'd know that CBS has a chance to reap the benefits from Favre going to the AFC.

Anonymous said...
Aug 9, 2008, 9:06:00 PM  

The Jets may be more competitive, but I dont see them making the playoffs, because basically three of the division winners are already known (pats, colts, chargers) and one of the wildcards goes to titans or jaguars whoever of those finishes second to colts.

The other wildcard probably goes to the second place team in AFC North.

Anonymous said...
Aug 9, 2008, 9:55:00 PM  

John Madden has a say on the flex schedule. He'll do anything to have his lover on NBC!

Anonymous said...
Aug 11, 2008, 2:24:00 PM  

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