Why the NFL chose NBC for Rams-Bears divisional-round game

After the Packers-Bears wild-card game Saturday on Prime Video made history as the most-streamed NFL game ever, NBC will make less-heralded history with the Rams-Bears divisional-round game Sunday.

The home of “Sunday Night Football” has aired divisional playoff games before, but never in the 5:30 p.m. Sunday window, which traditionally has gone to CBS and Fox. Sunday late-afternoon games have the highest viewership, as evidenced by the 49ers-Eagles wild-card game last Sunday drawing 41.1 million viewers, making it the most-watched wild-card game since 2022.

“All decisions on who gets what window and what matchup is the NFL,” NBC Sports president Rick Cordella said. “We certainly let them know our preferences. We sort of campaign for certain games. But at the end of the day, it comes down to what the [NFL] decides.”

NBC couldn’t be happier with the decision, on both the national and local levels. As Fox 32 did last week, NBC 5 will benefit from carrying the Bears. In an effort to keep that audience, the station will air “Playoff Extra” after the game, with host Alex Maragos joined by Dave Wannstedt, Charles Tillman and Jim Miller.

“I think everyone here at NBC can tell you exactly where they were when they found out that we were going to get the Bears game,” said Kevin Cross, NBC Chicago president and general manager. “There are few things that move the needle like the NFL, and there are even fewer things that move the needle like a Bears game on your air.”

NBC 5 has carried one Bears game this season, a thrilling-throughout, down-to-the-wire 42-38 loss to the 49ers on Dec. 28. The game drew a 25.6 Nielsen household rating in the Chicago market (about 937,000 households), the Bears’ third-highest local rating of the season and one of the highest-rated events NBC 5 carried all year.

The NFL’s decision to give Rams-Bears to NBC was a combination of balancing games across partners and building momentum for the network’s Super Bowl broadcast. Last week, NBC had Chargers-Patriots, which averaged the second-lowest viewership in the wild-card round at 28.9 million viewers.

The league didn’t announce the networks or start times for the divisional-round games until after the Texans-Steelers wild-card game Monday night. Had the Steelers won, there was a chance the Steelers-Patriots divisional game would have been played at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, though maybe not on NBC. But had the Steelers squeaked by and quarterback Aaron Rodgers struggled, it probably would’ve ended up where it did at 2 p.m. Sunday on ABC and ESPN.

Some have argued that the 49ers-Seahawks game, which is scheduled for 7 p.m. Saturday on Fox, should have been switched with Rams-Bears because those teams played Saturday and the 49ers now have a short week. But playing Saturday after playing Sunday is nothing new in the NFL playoffs. In the AFC, the Bills are in the same situation as the 49ers, and the league would say Rams-Bears has more national appeal than 49ers-Seahawks anyway.

After all, these are business decisions to maximize viewership, not accommodate teams.

Remote patrol

Marquee Sports Network will air live coverage of the Cubs Convention starting at 5 p.m. Friday and resuming at 9 a.m. Saturday. The Score will broadcast from the convention from 2 to 6 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to noon Saturday.

• Big Ten Network will be in Miami to cover the College Football Playoff championship Monday between Indiana and Miami. BTN will air pregame coverage from 9 to 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. to kickoff at 6:30. ESPN has the game.

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