The NFL has decided to make Saturday night’s Wild-Card tilt between the Chiefs and Dolphins available exclusively on Peacock. And longtime New York sports talk show host Mike Francesa is having none of it.
Speaking on his BetRivers show, Francesa ripped the league for forcing fans to pay for the game instead of being able to watch it for free.
“The NFL, which has the biggest, the best, and the most loyal fanbase anywhere, decides to basically thumb its nose at its fanbase and just make another greedy reach for another bundle of money like they need it,” Francesa said on his BetRivers Show.
The NFL’s deal with Peacock is reportedly worth $110 million to the league.
Francesa continued, “How many people in America don’t even know what streaming is?”
Radio host Mike Francesa attends DraftKings Kickoff Bash 2018 at Pilsener Haus & Biergarten on September 9, 2018, in Hoboken City. (Sean Zanni/Getty Images for DraftKings)
The only people able to watch the games for free will be those within the Kansas City and Miami television markets. The rest of the 20-30 million people (probably) who want to watch the game will have to buy a $5.99 monthly subscription to Peacock.
“People wait all year for these playoff games. They love these playoff games, and you’re gonna now charge them extra for a playoff game? They don’t give enough, you don’t make enough?” Francesa asked.
That sentiment is shared by many NFL fans across the country and Chiefs defensive end Charles Omenihu.
Charles Omenihu, #90 of the Kansas City Chiefs, adjusts the team’s defensive formation during the first quarter in a preseason game against the Cleveland Browns at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on August 26, 2023, in Kansas City, Missouri. (David Eulitt/Getty Images)
“Us playing on peacock ONLY is insane I won’t lie,” he wrote on X.
Omenihu made the comments before KHSB-TV Kathleen Choal confirmed that the game would be televised locally.
Francesa specifically aimed at NFL executives for their “slap in the face” to the fans.
“They show up and are there religiously every Sunday, and now you’re gonna charge them for a playoff game? It is the ultimate slap in the face to the best and most ardent and most dramatically important fanbase in America.
“Nobody gets the ratings even close to what the NFL gets. It’s never enough. Anytime they can find another pile of money to grab, they grab it with both hands, and it never stops.”