Real live events have a completely different atmosphere it seems as the second night of the draft in Detroit witnessed an extraordinary turnout, pulling in 275,000 fans.
A staggering 5.5 percent of the total audience tuned in, yet the television audience told a complete different tale.
Second night of draft generates smallest audience since 2012, with 5.1 million on ABC, NFL Network, ESPN2. https://t.co/KxOn4L1P48
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) April 30, 2024
According to a report from Sports Business Journal, a measly 5.1 million people watched the multi-network simultaneous broadcast of the draft’s second night.
Such a number is a novel low since the year 2012. Irrespective of the live crowd’s energy, TV viewership lagged, drawing attention to a considerable divergence between in-person participation and TV engagement.
A more in-depth look at the individual channel ratings for the night exposes the severity of the viewership decline.
With ABC luring approximately 2.7 million viewers and the NFL Network pulling in an average of 793,000, the numbers were unsettling.
This represents the NFL Network’s weakest numbers for a Friday night draft since 2011 when the channel only managed an appallingly low 549,000.
Exploring the potential reasons behind the dwindling numbers, we find that no quarterbacks were drafted in the second and third rounds.
This could have possibly led to the reduction in anticipation and excitement among the fans, making the draft less enticing to watch on a Friday night.
The overall buzz appeared to dissipate following the completion of the initial round, further contributing to lesser viewership.
