The NFL is expanding the playoffs to involve 14 teams instead of 12, with seven teams coming from each conference. There will be six total games in the Wild Card Round, and only one team in each conference gets a bye instead of two.
There's something even more interesting about this playoff expansion. Part of CBS' playoff coverage will feature a separately produced telecast of a game that will air on Nickelodeon. It will be tailored for a younger audience:
Part of the NFL's agreement to expand playoffs to 14 teams includes one of the CBS games getting a kid-tailored broadcast on Nickelodeon pic.twitter.com/J39tVzzkW7
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) March 31, 2020
Yes, Nickelodeon. As in “Rugrats,” “Rocket Power,” “Hey Arnold,” “SpongeBob SquarePants” and more.
This is actually an interesting idea that could work wonders for the NFL.
It's not always easy to keep people paying attention, and that's especially true when it involves children. If they aren't all that interested in football, or even just in the teams playing, they might not want to watch.
Article Continues BelowBut throw it on Nickelodeon and find some ways to make it more fun and enjoyable for them, and you might get some more eyes on the NFL product.
What “tailored for a younger audience” means is still unclear. Will they try to hide some of the bigger hits? Run it on delay to make sure you don't see or hear any “bad” words?
Obviously they will have different announcers. So, do they bring in stars from Nickelodeon shows? Or even have cartoon characters as the announcers? You'd have to imagine they'll be making plenty of jokes and references to shows and music.
If they aren't going all out to make it extremely kid-oriented, there's really no point. Making just a few minor changes wouldn't be worth it.
Due to that, you should expect to see some drastic changes. That could actually be very entertaining and fun to watch. It would be a good way to get more kids interested and maybe make some parents more willing to allow their children to watch the NFL.