Viewership increases for NFL wild-card games
The NFL has taken its increase in viewers over to the playoffs. The league said on Monday that there was an average of 28.4 million viewers for the four wild-card round games, which is a 12 per cent increase over last year.
The Philadelphia Eagles game against the Chicago Bears on NBC averaged 35.89 million, making it the network’s most-watched wildcard game on record. NBC’s previous best was the Jan. 3, 1988, game between Seattle and Houston at 35.86 million. The audience for Sunday’s game peaked at 45.1 million viewers during the final nine minutes.
Sunday’s first game between the Los Angeles Chargers and Baltimore Ravens on CBS averaged 25.4 million.
Fox’s telecast of Saturday night’s Seattle Seahawks-Dallas Cowboys game averaged 29.5 million while the weekend’s first game between the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans averaged 22.8 million on ESPN and ABC.
Digital streaming also increased 139 per cent with an average minute audience of 496,000.
BRONCOS’ COACHING SEARCH
In news out of Englewood, Colo., John Elway met with Bears defensive co-ordinator Vic Fangio about the Denver Broncos’ head coaching vacancy Monday, a day after Chicago’s 16-15 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC wild-card playoffs. At 60, Fangio is the oldest of the five candidates on Elway’s short list as he searches for his fourth head coach in six years.
Elway, who fired Vance Joseph a week ago, also interviewed former Colts coach Chuck Pagano and Steelers O-line coach Mike Munchak, who are both 58, Patriots defensive play-caller Brian Flores, 37, and Rams quarterbacks coach Zac Taylor, 35.
Unlike Munchak and Pagano, Fangio has no NFL head coaching experience, although he has been an assistant for 32 seasons in the NFL and 34 overall, beginning with the Philadelphia Stars of the old USFL in 1984.
STEELERS FIRE RB COACH
The Pittsburgh Steelers have parted ways with running backs coach James Saxon.
Coach Mike Tomlin announced Monday that the team opted not to renew Saxon’s contract for the 2019 season.
Saxon’s departure marks the second dismissal among the coaching staff since the Steelers went 9-6-1 and missed the playoffs. The team fired outside linebackers coach Joey Porter last Friday.