Chiefs-Dolphins playoff game airing exclusively on Peacock is a ‘disgrace’ for fans, says NY congressman Pat Ryan

NEW YORK — Outrage over an NFL playoff game being shown exclusively on a subscription streaming service has reached the political realm.

Rep. Pat Ryan, a New York Democrat, is pushing the NFL and NBCUniversal to make Saturday’s wild-card matchup between the Chiefs and Dolphins available to all cable customers, not just those who shell out extra for Peacock.

In a letter to both corporations, Ryan said that national audiences “will be forced to choose between signing up for yet another expensive streaming service or missing out on a major playoff game.”

“It’s a disgrace,” reads Ryan’s letter, which the Congressman sent to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and to Rick Cordella, president of NBC Sports. “Fans already face exorbitant prices to watch every game during the regular season; they don’t deserve to be squeezed even further by greedy corporations.

“This bait-and-switch is particularly egregious for consumers who already pay for NBC as part of their cable package. Since Peacock is a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, this exclusive deal essentially double-charges loyal fans to watch games they thought they had already paid for.”

Saturday night’s game in Kansas City marks the first time a streaming service holds exclusive broadcast rights for an NFL playoff game. The game will also be made available in Kansas City and Miami on those cities’ local NBC affiliates. National audiences can tune in as well on mobile devices via NFL+.

NBC spent about $110 million for the rights to the playoff game, according to the Sports Business Journal.

Peacock exclusively aired a regular-season game between the Bills and Chargers in December, while Amazon Prime Video broadcasts the “Thursday Night Football” games each week.

In October, Ryan — who represents the Hudson Valley — called for an investigation into sports blackouts and deals for streaming exclusives. In his new letter, the Congressman asked the NFL and NBC to make Saturday’s playoff game available on broadcast television and to end exclusive streaming contracts.

“It is absolutely ridiculous that my constituents, who already pay for NBC, have to pay even more to watch this game,” Ryan said in a statement. “How much more profit do Roger Goodell and NBC need to make at the expense of hard working Americans before they are satisfied?

“I’m demanding the NFL and NBC stop the BS and offer fans the service they already pay for, or we’re coming for your antitrust exemption,” he continued. “The NFL raked in $12 billion in 2022; NBCUniversal made almost $40 billion. They now have a choice, either fix this problem, or we’ll fix it for them.”

In a statement, the NFL said its “media strategy has been to make our games available in as many ways as possible to meet our fans where they spend their time. As streaming video becomes commonplace, we are increasingly expanding the digital distribution of NFL content while continuing a longstanding policy that all NFL games be shown on free, over-the-air television in the markets of the participating teams.”

It continued, “We understand that in the first few years of moving some games exclusively to digital platforms our viewership will likely not reach broadcast levels, but just as the NFL on ESPN grew into a huge platform following its debut in 1987 when cable was relatively young, we are confident these moves will be a tremendous success.”

Representatives for NBC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Ryan’s letter comes days after Chiefs defensive end Charles Omenihu offered Peacock subscriptions to fans so they can watch the game.

The Ringer founder Bill Simmons, meanwhile, called the situation “a disaster,” while former WFAN host Mike Francesca questioned, “How many people in America don’t even know what streaming is, no less finding streaming, or [are] willing to pay an extra amount to get a playoff game?”