All articles tagged with #standalone windows
Jason Kelce argues on New Heights that Sunday is the heart of NFL tradition, but the league’s growing use of standalone games on other days risks diluting that Sunday‑feeling, even as broadcast rights and new media partnerships push football onto more days and platforms.
An Awful Announcing analysis shows the NFL moving away from traditional Sunday regional windows on CBS/Fox toward standalone games across streaming and cable, reducing total Sunday afternoon games to 197 in 2026 (down from 211 in 2021). There are 23 standalone windows this year, up from 15 last season, with exclusive rights deals including Netflix (five games) and Prime Video, among others. While the league argues standalone games offer broader access and higher revenue, critics warn they fragment viewership, weaken local over-the-air coverage, and dilute the value of the standard Sunday slate and packages like Sunday Ticket and NFL RedZone.