• Loading stock data...
Monday, June 16, 2025

A Two-Decade Endeavor Made the NFL a Year-Round Product

  • Since 2003, NFL Network has been the media glue chiefly responsible for making the league a full-calendar event.
  • NFLN launched “Thursday Night Football,” a successful RedZone Channel, and pioneered tentpole coverage of the Super Bowl, Draft, and Combine.
NFL Network
NFL

Since Rich Eisen welcomed fans to the “new gathering place for the NFL fan and players” on Nov. 4, 2003, NFL Network has helped turn football into a year-round obsession. 

Over its first two decades, NFLN launched “Thursday Night Football” as a TV franchise, provided in-depth coverage of the Super Bowl and NFL Draft, created TV shows such as “Good Morning Football,” “NFL Total Access,” and “A Football Life” and earned 33 Sports Emmys.

Along the way, the network launched alumni to new heights, including anchor Nate Burleson of “CBS Mornings,” NFL Insider Adam Schefter of ESPN, and Coach Deion Sanders of Colorado.

Thanks to the network’s yeoman efforts, it has expanded from about 11 million U.S. homes to 55 million — and the league has continued to find new spaces to conquer, including the biggest game of Week 9: the Kansas City Chiefs vs. Miami Dolphins from Frankfurt, Germany.

After televising the first-ever game from Germany last year, NFLN will continue to build its German fan base in the $20 billion league’s next breakout global market.

Jamie Erdahl and cast of NFL Network's "Good Morning Football."

Jamie Erdahl Reflects On Rapid Transition To Hosting ‘Good Morning Football’

Erdahl talked to FOS about her experience since taking over the morning…
September 28, 2023

NFLN has always covered the league’s tentpole events like nobody else, including every Super Bowl and Draft since 2004 and 2006, respectively. But pro football was still a fall-winter proposition, with long gaps between seasons.  

The channel has survived in the competitive world of cable TV by creating new franchises — and covering events nobody else bothered to.

David Jurenka, senior vice president of media and general manager for the Los Angeles-based network, quotes league media czar Brian Rolapp, who told him his job is to “super-serve” the under-served.

“There’s no limit to high-quality content that NFL fans will consume,” Jurenka told Front Office Sports. “If you package it the right way, produce it the right way, and productize it the right way. That’s really been a testament to what this team has done for the last 20 years.”

When NFLN debuted “Thursday Night Football” in 2006, the eight-game package was seen as an ugly duckling innovation, resented by players and coaches. By 2017, it had expanded to 18 games — and was televised by league media partners like CBS Sports, NBC Sports, and Amazon Prime Video.

Now, Amazon, the country’s biggest e-commerce company, is paying $1 billion annually through 2033 to stream TNF games outside local TV markets exclusively. This month, Amazon Prime Video will stream its first-ever “Black Friday” game the day after Thanksgiving. 

In 2004, when NFLN first covered the Scouting Combine, it offered viewers six one-hour shows (Eli Manning was put through the paces of that 2004 broadcast. The San Diego Chargers eventually drafted him, then traded him to the New York Giants, where he won two Super Bowls).

By 2023, NFLN’s Combine coverage had grown to over 50 hours. The annual Draft itself, meanwhile, has become the league’s biggest tentpole event outside the Super Bowl.

Jurenka sees similar TV potential for the league’s annual schedule release, which has become an event.

“We see that as an opportunity to continue to grow that and make it more impactful,” he said.

NFLN also outdid DirecTV’s original Red Zone — which is now out of the picture — and launched its own RedZone Channel in 2009. Charismatic anchor Scott Hanson turned the popular whip-around show into a showcase event for fantasy players and bettors (NFLN will offer a free preview of RedZone Sunday).

“I love the RedZone. It’s one of the greatest inventions of all time,” said Gary Myers, author of “Once A Giant” about life after football for the Super Bowl champion 1986 Giants. “If you’re an NFL fanatic, (NFLN) is the answer to your prayers.”

On the other hand, Myers doesn’t think NFLN covers live games as well as the other media partners. He questioned the hiring of some former players like Warren Sapp, who was fired by the network after his arrest for soliciting prostitutes during Super Bowl Week.

Still, Myers noted NFLN has been the media glue chiefly responsible for making the league a full-calendar event.

“Back when I first started covering Dallas Cowboys in the early 80’s, you’d go from the Super Bowl with not a lot in between. You had to manufacture stuff,” Myers said. “Then the NFL Network came along – and made all this stuff like the Combine accessible to football fans.”

Bill Belichick

Could Bill Belichick Be the Next Great NFL TV Analyst?

Notorious for curt answers and a prickly attitude toward the media, the…
October 4, 2023

Looking forward, NFLN is facing significant challenges. The crumbling of the lucrative cable bundle has cable networks from NFLN to ESPN on red alert.

We still have to see whether Commissioner Roger Goodell’s exploration of strategic partners for the league’s media operation — including possibly selling minority stakes — results in any deals. 

Similar to ESPN and other sports media companies, NFLN ordered some staff layoffs earlier this year to reduce costs.

But for now, Jurenka is happy with NFLN’s mix of linear TV, digital and direct-to-consumer offerings.  

“It’s harder. But I like our position. I like the things that we’ve done to position ourselves to continue to engage, and maybe even grow, the number of fans and the quality of time we’re spending with those fans.”

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Red Sox Trade Rafael Devers to Giants in Shocker

Devers just signed a 10-year, $313.5 million extension in 2023.

NBA Offseason Begins During Finals As Magic Trade Huge Package For Bane

Orlando is sending four first-round picks to Memphis for the star guard.
Dec 5, 2024; Miami, FL, USA; FIFA president Gianni Infantino presents the FIFA Club World Cup trophy during the Club Word Cup draw at Telemundo Studios.

Revamped Club World Cup Is FIFA’s Billion-Dollar Gamble

The revamped soccer event debuts amid controversy.

Caitlin Clark Return Draws Sellout 15 Hours After Pacers Finals Game

Fever TV ratings dropped significantly while Clark was out.

Featured Today

Jun 10, 2025; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; United States head coach Mauricio Pochettino stands during the anthem against the Switzerland during the first at Geodis Park

Gold Cup Is Complicated for USMNT—but U.S. Soccer Has Its Eyes on..

Uncertain tournament success isn’t fazing forward-looking U.S. soccer.
Jan 24, 2017; Davidson, NC, USA; The Davidson Wildcats student section cheers during the first half against the Duquesne Dukes at McKillop Court at John M. Belk Arena. Davidson defeated Duquesne 74-60.
June 6, 2025

Every College Wants a Flashy Basketball GM Hire Right Now

The role is more important than ever, and the definition is ever-evolving.
August 31, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; The Goodyear blimp flies over Ohio Stadium during the first half of Saturday’s NCAA Division I football game between the Akron Zips and the Ohio State Buckeyes.
June 6, 2025

Why the Goodyear Blimp Is at Every Major Sports Event

The airship wasn’t built to cover sports. Now it’s a regular presence.
May 27, 2015; Paris, France; Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) knocks the clay off her shoe during her match against Simona Halep (ROU) on day four of the French Open at Roland Garros
June 4, 2025

Roland-Garros’s Iconic Red-Clay Surface Is a Precise Alchemy

The exact science behind maintaining the French Open’s red clay.
June 11, 2025

Adam Silver Opens Up on NBA Finals Ratings, Court Decals

Adam Silver appeared on ESPN’s pregame show.
June 12, 2025

NBA Finals Ratings Rise in Game 3, but Still Trail Recent Years

The Pacers lead the Thunder, 2–1, in the Finals.
Sponsored

Game On: Portfolio Players Stories, Brought to You by E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

Ted Leonsis unpacks basketball’s global rise, media rights, and portfolio ownership.
Jun 11, 2025; Oakmont, Pennsylvania, USA; General view of US Open signage on the 18th hole during a practice round for the U.S. Open golf tournament at Oakmont Country Club.
June 11, 2025

U.S. Open Still ‘Months Away’ From Signing New Media-Rights Deal

NBC’s contract with the USGA expires in 2026.
Aaron Boone
June 11, 2025

MLB’s Jomboy Deal Shows Full 180

Baseball had long fought creators or kept them at arm’s length.
June 10, 2025

French Open Ratings Up 25% in TNT’s First Year, Fueled by Finals

The men’s match peaked at 2.6 million viewers.
June 10, 2025

Disney’s Hulu Takeover Sets Stage for Deeper ESPN Integration

The ESPN parent company will pay $438.7 million to complete the transaction.