NBC Sports Network continues to add layers to its programming in an effort to make a push for a larger share of a lucrative market.
One month after it was announced that the all-sports channel would be launching a morning highlights show, it was revealed yesterday that Mike Florio's ProFootballTalk.com would be given a one-hour daily TV spin-off during the NFL season.
Florio and Erik Kuselias will host the aptly named Pro Football Talk starting Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. ET. Florio notes that NBC personalities Rodney Harrison, Hines Ward, Doug Flutie, Ross Tucker, Amani Toomer and Peter King will also contribute.
This news comes days after it was revealed that the channel would be moving about 400 spots on the dial closer to ESPN, which might also help with viewership.
It's a natural next step for the network, which is trying to keep CBS Sports Network down while also trying to snatch some of ESPN's viewers away. A daily football show helps, and the Peacock is smart to utilize Florio. CBS doesn't have a Florio who can be featured that often, which is why it is only installing a weekly pro football show this fall.
Not everyone loves PFT and Florio, but few don't read it. NBC recognized that — as well as the fact that Florio offers something that most talking heads and pundits don't — when it bought the website three years ago. Since then, it has helped grow the PFT brand. Now, the network is benefiting by using that monster it helped create to help boost one of its fledgling properties. PFT gets more website traffic in a day than NBC Sports Network gets viewers in a week or more. It's a smart move to expand the brand even further on television.
