The National Football League continues to hemorrhage fans as player protests during the national anthem enter their second month, with ratings for the NFL’s premier ‘Monday Night Football’ plunging nearly 10% in just one week.
According to Deadline Hollywood, Monday night’s match-up netted just a 7.2 market share, down 9% from the previous week’s already dismal ratings. The low figure matches the troubled league’s second lowest viewership of the 2017 season.
“With a 7.2 in metered market results, last night’s MNF was down 9% from last week’s Philadelphia Eagles’ 34-24 triumph over the Washington Redskins,” writes Deadline.
“While not the MNF season low of the October 16 battle between the Tennessee Titans and the Indianapolis Colts, last night’s Chiefs vs. Broncos match-up is very close to the previous MNF season low of the October 9 Minnesota Vikings and Chicago Bears games,” adds the author.
The NFL has been struggling to regain its footing following weeks of players choosing to “take a knee” during the performance of the US national anthem. The ensuing controversy gained national attention when President Trump called for a total boycott of the NFL until officials and owners require players to stand during the ‘Star-Spangled Banner.’