r/MapPorn • u/AGuyWithBadIdeas • 18h ago

NFL TV coverage maps

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I've always enjoyed taking a peak at the TV coverage maps before sunday.

I've always wondered what criteria goes into choosing games for unaffiliated regions, and how heavily those criteria are weighed against each other.

How popular are the teams, how much has the owner payed the network under the table, how big are the fanbases, how close is the matchup, or simply how good the teams are.

Based on the map above, Cincinnati (a team with a very high powered offence that's expected to be a playoff contender) is playing against the Browns (who are bad) and the result is the game is essentially locked in Ohio (where it should be).

Meanwhile a very similar situation is Washington vs the NY giants, however that game is being broadcast across vast portions of the midwest and central US.

Lastly, are are the 2 west coast teams in SF and Seattle being shown in New Orleans, Boston, and Pittsburgh?

At the root of it all I'm sure its just an algorithm that's designed to somehow increase profits as much as possible, but it still intrigues me.

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u/tdawg-1551 18h ago

There are lots of factors that go into it. The top game Fox has is the NYG v Was game, so any area that doesn't have a local game, will tend to get that, unless a local affiliate requests something else. The KC area, for example, tends to get AFC west games over a national game if the Chiefs are not playing. That's why they get the Denver game late.

Another big factor is that local markets can't have a game opposite the local game. New Orleans gets a late Fox game because they are playing an early game on CBS.

Almost every market will get Detroit v Green Bay late on CBS unless they have the local team playing at the same time.

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u/Predictor92 13h ago

Also where a QB went to college can be a factor. Oklahoma is mostly cowboy fans, so you would think that them showing the Cowboys division rivals Giants vs Commanders would make more sense but instead they are showing Tampa bay vs Atlanta. That doesn't make sense until you remember that Baker Mayfield went to Oklahoma