NFL: Will Super Bowl Repeat Hurt Ratings?

When it comes to the NFL, the biggest game of the year is Super Bowl Sunday. The Super Bowl parties, the commercials, and the halftime show are ramped up to 10, and even people who don’t watch football often gather this time of year to have a good time. Last year’s matchup saw the Tampa Bay Buccaneers destroy the Kansas City Chiefs which seemed like a tall order. They pulled it off, however, and both teams are on that same path again this year.

But that’s a problem. Just like superhero fatigue in theaters, are fans going through Tom Brady fatigue? Other than Tampa Bay fans of course. Not only has the NFL put him on the pedestal with him being the winningest QB in league history, his counterpart Patrick Mahomes is on a similar rise. One is at the end of his career and the other is just getting into his prime. If the two make the Super Bowl again this year it’ll be the second time they face off in the big game. By now, people are already over the Tom Brady era and are just begging for him to retire. If Mahomes is on the same path, 5 years down the road people will burn out on the young quarterback.

Neither of those two things is either quarterback’s fault, but clearly, the NFL has a competition problem. If the league can’t put out more interesting matchups than their 5 elite quarterbacks right now, how long before people start tuning out. Yes, there’s been a mix-up with the wild cards and a 9-8 season will get fresh faces in the playoffs, but the usual suspects typically run away with it. Manning and Brady in the AFC in their days. Brady and Rodgers in the NFC these days. Now Mahomes is running away with the AFC despite Josh Allen on his heels.

NFL: Which Remaining Playoff Team Is Biggest Threat?

Of course, Derek Carr and the Raiders made it this year. Joe Burrow has the Bengals looking good. But the teams that are likely going to make a deep playoff run are the same 4 to 5 QBs ESPN can’t shut up about. Yes, they’re talented and give tv personalities something to talk about. However, how stale with the NFL’s product become if they can’t find a way to get more teams shaking things up.

How long will it be if the NFL can’t fix their broken league? How many people will start tuning out if they have to keep seeing Super Bowls where the same 4-5 teams are making it while the majority of the league has losing seasons. It seems as if the NFL is designed to keep winning teams winning so they have better ratings not for their product, but for the media that covers their product.

By no means should teams let off the gas just to make the league even out, but the cat is out of the bag. The NFL has become boring lately and if they don’t find a way to mix it up, it could hurt them in the long run.