Saturday marked Peacock’s first NFL exclusive of the season, which turned into an unexpectedly exciting game between the Bills and Chargers. As we await Nielsen measurements to see how many people actually tuned in, let’s evaluate Peacock’s big selling point for the game: a commercial free fourth quarter.
From a public opinion perspective, NBC knew it’d be fighting an uphill battle placing a primetime NFL game exclusively on its streaming service, especially considering the game had major implications on the AFC playoff picture. The network wanted to make sure fans felt like they got something more in return than they’d get from a standard NFL broadcast — they would be shelling out at least $5.99 to watch after all. Why not super-serve the hardcore NFL fan willing to pay a few dollars to watch the game with a commercial free fourth quarter?
It was a great idea in principle. Reward the fan willing to pay with extra content and ideally a more attractive product. No doubt, one of the most common complaints from football fans is that the broadcasts have too many commercials. NBC’s execution, however, left much to be desired.
Starting with the first would-be commercial break, the awkwardness of NBC’s game plan was on full display. After Chargers kicker Cameron Dicker hit a 47-yard field goal to cut Buffalo’s lead to 21-16 with 12:36 left to go in the game, NBC kicked back to the booth where Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth curiously began discussion on … Monday night’s 49ers-Ravens game.
The transition from close 4th quarter game to a rehearsed discussion of a game that would take place two days later was jarring. With such an important drive coming up for the Bills it made no sense to begin talking about a different game entirely. Viewers — especially those that paid $5.99 for this specific game — want to hear about the teams currently playing on the field!
Later in the 4th quarter, Dicker hit another field goal to cut Buffalo’s lead to 21-19 with 7:19 left to go. This time, NBC decided to cut to its Football Night in America studio team. Another blunder.
The entire point of a commercial free broadcast is to immerse viewers in the game. Make them feel like they’re in the stadium rather than sitting on the couch. To cut back to the studio at such a critical juncture in the game ruins any chance of immersion for the fan. This is the time a broadcast should be sticking to the field, showing tight shots of the players and coaches during timeouts, cutting to crowd shots, or better yet allowing Collinsworth the space to go long on game analysis.
As SMW’s resident golf media analyst, the commercial free concept is something I’m pretty familiar with. Often marquee events like the four majors or the Tour Championship will air the final nine holes commercial free with a presenting sponsor. This allows for narrative building on the broadcast to take shape, analysis to inform the audience between action, and for suspense to build while fans await the next nerve-wracking shot.
NBC chose not to take this approach, instead opting for pre-planned segments and not allowing the game broadcast to stand on its own merits. Tirico and Collinsworth are two of the best in the business. Let them talk about the game happening on the field. Don’t box them into something planned earlier that week in a production meeting. The game deserved more than that. The fans that paid extra to watch the game deserved more than that.
This probably won’t be the last time we’ll see a commercial free quarter in the NFL. The next time this happens, fans would be better served if the broadcast simply stuck to doing what they do best: covering the game.
