Poll: Fans believe national anthem protests hurt NFL ratings

Some fans believe people are not tuning into NFL games due to the national anthem protests.

A new poll conducted by Seton Hall found that 56% of fans believe NFL television ratings are down due to players protesting the national anthem.

The study was conducted with information from 841 adults in the U.S. from October 24–26. Recent results show the NFL's ratings are down an average of 11%

Monday Night Football is down 24% from this time a year ago, Sunday Night Football is down 19% and Thursday Night Football is down 18%.

“There is no single factor here, no one fixable thing for the NFL to act on,” poll director Rick Gentile said in a press release. “But it is somewhat remarkable that the impact of the national anthem protest seems to hold, given that the action occurs pre-game and isn’t even televised.”

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Here are some other takeaways from the poll:

• 50% of people believe fans are not tuning in due to the presidential election

• 47% of people believe fans are not tuning in due to the controversy over the handling of domestic violence cases involving players.

• 39% of people believe fans are not tuning in due to postseason baseball

• 33% of people believe fans are not tuning in due to concussion research and recent findings

• 33% of people believe fans are not tuning in due to a decline in quality of play on the field.

Week 8 kicks off Thursday night with the Titans and Jaguars.