NFL conference championships may see bigger TV audiences as winter storm slams country

As the final four teams remaining in the NFL postseason vie for a Super Bowl berth on Sunday, Americans might watch at higher-than-normal rates.

Much of the country, from as far south and west as Texas to as far north and east as New England, is hunkered down due to a massive winter storm bringing frigid temperatures, snow, and ice. The storm has put normal weekend plans that require travel or extended time spent outside on hold. And while that is unfortunate for folks who had commitments this weekend, it could be The Perfect Storm for the NFL, which will hold its two most important games outside of the Super Bowl on Sunday.

At 3 p.m. ET, the New England Patriots will play the Denver Broncos at Mile High Stadium in the AFC Championship Game, while the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks will play the NFC Championship Game at 6:30 p.m. ET from Lumen Field.

First off, the NFL was quite lucky to avoid locations for these games where the weather could have impacted them. Neither Denver nor Seattle is in the storm’s path. Many other NFL cities are. Had any of those teams hosted the game, postponements would’ve been a possibility. That, of course, would’ve negatively affected the league’s viewership.

Now, knowing that the games will be played on time, Americans fortunate enough to retain power amid heavy snow and ice have a clear option for entertainment: the NFL.

Of course, the conference championship games are already usually the two most-watched television events of the year outside of the Super Bowl. Last year’s AFC Championship drew 58 million viewers on CBS. The NFC Championship turned in 44 million on Fox. The last time that under 40 million viewers watched a conference championship game was in 2009 (Eagles-Cardinals, 38.4 million). In other words, these games will attract massive audiences no matter what.

But this year’s weather could boost those numbers even further. Cold weather has historically kept people inside, leading to higher television audiences. And as much of the country, including the most densely populated regions, deals with sub-freezing temperatures and adverse travel conditions, people are more likely to flip on NFL games.

Now, there is a case to be made that the storm might adversely impact viewership as fewer people watch in out-of-home environments like bars and restaurants, an audience segment that makes up a significant portion of Nielsen’s final audience counts after the measurement company added those viewers into the tally post-2020.

Whether or not the increase of in-home viewing is able to outpace the likely decrease in out-of-home viewing will determine how much impact the weather really has on Sunday’s audiences.