Sarni's Scrolls: Chiefs-Bills Attracts Record 50 Million Viewers

WWE's 'Raw' to move to Netflix in $5 billion deal over 10 years

Everyone knows the NFL dominates TV ratings. 

Latest example: Last weekend's Divisional Playoffs.

Highlight: Sunday night’s classic between the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills averaged 50.3 million viewers for CBS. The telecast peaked at 56.25 in the second half. It is now the most-watched divisional playoff game ever.

Add in the other three games and the average is an amazing 40 million:

■ Saturday afternoon, Texans-Ravens, ABC/ESPN: 31.8 million

■ Saturday night, Packers-Niners, Fox: 37.5 million

■ Sunday afternoon, Bucs-Lions, NBC: 40.4 million

Three of the four time slots last weekend featured viewership gains over 2023. The only slot that was down was the early Saturday window.

Which teams do you want to see in the Super Bowl?

One poll:

■ Ravens-Lions, 40%

■ Chiefs-Lions, 26%

■ Ravens-49ers, 22%

■ Chiefs-49ers, 12%

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Fox Sports' Tom Rinaldi vs. Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur.

LaFeur is miffed over a report given on air by Rinaldi during Saturday's Packers-49ers playoff game.

Background: Before an NFL game, broadcasters meet with the head coach to get information that can enhance a broadcast. During his production meeting with Fox, LaFleur said “I just pray” whenever his kicker, Anders Carlson, goes on the field.

Rinaldi repeated that story on air Saturday night shortly after Carlson missed a big field goal. But LaFleur is saying he was just joking when he told the broadcast crew that he prays when his kicker goes on the field.

It seems Rinaldi didn’t get the joke.

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WWE’s weekly television show “Raw” will move to Netflix next year as part of a major streaming deal worth more than $5 billion.

The agreement is for 10 years, with Netflix having an option to extend the deal for an additional 10 years. There’s also an opt out available to Netflix after the initial five years.

The deal represents a seismic shift for the entertainment industry as it transitions from linear TV to streaming.

It also marks a huge win for Netflix as it looks to expand further into live streaming.

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Provocative recent column by "USA Today's" Nancy Armour about how some "thin-skinned" men are triggered by Taylor Swift at Chiefs' games.

Cheryl Cooky, a professor at Purdue University who studies the intersection among gender, sports and culture, was quoted... and I believe she's absolutely right:

"There’s still a segment of the culture where football is the sanctuary from femininity, from anything that’s feminized. This is where men get to be men.

"Taylor Swift is a scapegoat for all of the male grievances of a shifting gender order in the NFL. And the broader culture. This story is, in some ways, not a story about Taylor Swift but a story about fragile masculinity among sports fans and the residuals of old-school masculinity in some corners of fandom.”

Armour elaborated:

"That's just too much for some men. And, yes, it is almost always men.

"These same men claim no one cares about women’s sports and look for any excuse to diminish the accomplishment of a female athlete. Aside from the basic ridiculousness of it all, the larger question is, what’s it to you?"

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"Oppenheimer" dominated Tuesday's Academy Awards nominations with 13, followed by "Poor Things" (11) and "Killers of the Flower Moon" (10).

Top categories:

Best Picture

■ American Fiction

■ Anatomy of a Fall

■ Barbie

■ The Holdovers

■ Killers of the Flower Moon

■ Maestro

■ Oppenheimer

■ Past Lives

■ Poor Things

■ The Zone of Interest

Best Actress

■ Annette Bening, Nyad

■ Lily Gladstone, Killers of the Flower Moon

■ Sandra Hüller, Anatomy of a Fall

■ Carey Mulligan, Maestro

■ Emma Stone, Poor Things

Best Actor

■ Bradley Cooper, Maestro

■ Colman Domingo, Rustin

■ Paul Giamatti, The Holdovers

■ Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer

■ Jeffrey Wright, American Fiction

Best Supporting Actress

■ Emily Blunt, Oppenheimer

■ Danielle Brooks, The Color Purple

■ America Ferrera, Barbie

■ Jodie Foster, Nyad

■ Da'Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers

Best Supporting Actor

■ Sterling K. Brown, American Fiction

■ Robert De Niro, Killers of the Flower Moon

■ Robert Downey Jr., Oppenheimer

■ Ryan Gosling, Barbie

■ Mark Ruffalo, Poor Things

Best Director

■ Justine Triet, Anatomy of a Fall

■ Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon

■ Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer

■ Yorgos Lanthimos, Poor Things

■ Jonathan Glazer, The Zone of Interest

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ETC.

■ The 4. Coco Gauff-2. Aryna Sabalenka semifinal (3:30 am ET on Thursday) is the true Australian Open championship. 12. Zheng Qinwen and qualifier Dayna Yastremska play the surprising second semifinal.

■ The men's semifinals match 1. Novak Djokovic vs. 4. Jannik Sinner and 3. Daniil Medvedev vs. 5. Alexander Zverev, who upset 2. Carlos Alvarez.

■ The first women’s Beanpot at TD Garden was another spectacular victory for women's sports. Northeastern defeated Boston University 2-1 in overtime to take the title before a roaring crowd (lots of young female players with their parents) of 10,633 on Tuesday. It was the first women’s college hockey game to take place in an NHL rink since it became an official NCAA sport in 2000.

■ The Pro Volleyball Federation launches Wednesday with seven teams playing a four-month schedule.

■ The Edmonton Oilers won their 14th in a row on Tuesday. The record is 17 by the Pittsburgh Penguins (1992-93).

■ Wednesday Watchlist: Thunder-Spurs (Holmgren vs. Wembanyama), 9:30 ET, ESPN... PGA Farmer's Insurance Open, Wed.-Sat. to avoid Sunday NFL conference championships.

■ Thursday Watchlist: No. 1 South Carolina (17-0) at No. 9 LSU (18-2), 8 ET, ESPN.

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■ The AFC Championship Game will be the first playoff matchup between former MVP quarterbacks (Pat Mahomes, Lamar Jackson) both under the age of 30.

■ The Detroit Lions sold out their Ford Field Watch Party for Sunday's NFC Championship game in 12 hours.

■ Inter Miami is winless and scoreless in two pre-season matches... 0-0 at El Salvador, 0-1 at FC Dallas.

■ AT&T Stadium in Dallas has reportedly been picked to host the 2026 men’s World Cup.

■ Naomi Osaka has received a wild card into the Abu Dhabi Open.

■ Dwayne Johnson has regained full ownership of 'The Rock' name, which had been held by WWE.

■ The Kelce Brothers are on the cover of People.

■ Formula 1 has launched the world’s first F1 karting experience. Three tracks have been built in London.

■ Me'Arah O'Neal, daughter of Shaq, has committed to the University of Florida.

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■ Legendary stand-up comedian Steven Wright has written his first novel, "Harold." It follows the thoughts of a 1960s third grader during a single day at school.

■ Razzie Awards Worst Picture nominations: "The Exorcist: Believer"; "Expend4bles"; "Meg 2: The Trench"; "Shazam! Fury of the Gods"; "Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey."

■ After two years, Canada's Rideau Canal Skateway is once again open to the public. The nearly five-mile-long Ottawa landmark is the largest natural ice skating rink in the world.

■ The St. Regis Residences, a new luxury condo in Miami, featured two $45M penthouses that include a full-sized pickleball court.

■ Applebee's $200 subscription pass for a weekly date night sold out in minutes.

■ Baby names nearing extinction: Boys: Julius, Jaiden, Johnny; Girls: Brooke, Blake, Mckenzie.

■ New fitness trend: Stretchlabs,  "assisted stretching boutiques."

■ Zendaya debuted bangs at Paris Fashion Week.

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THEY SAID IT 

■ "You're entitled to your opinion, my boy." -- Udonis Haslem to Paul Pierce in response to his comments that the former Heat player's jersey retirement was "given" not "earned."