The NFL is the undisputed television king of the United States and creating new history in 2024.
Kansas City’s thrilling 27-24 road victory over the Buffalo Bills in an AFC Divisional Round game wasn’t just a must-watch playoff contest that featured Taylor Swift in a suite and a shirtless Jason Kelce pounding beers with freezing fans.
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Chiefs vs Bills also made TV history with stunning viewership numbers during a media age increasingly dominated by streaming platforms.
Patrick Mahomes against Josh Allen became the most-watched NFL Divisional Game in history and the first to surpass more than 50 million viewers, according to CBS Sports.
The back-and-forth game, which saw Buffalo miss a potential game-tying field goal in the final minutes, peaked with more than 56 million viewers.
Travis Kelce gives goodbye kiss to Bills Mafia after Buffalo blows another playoff game in Kansas City Chiefs win
Surely, Swift’s appearance had something to do with the huge numbers.
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But the NFL, which has dominated American TV for years, has been on a record pace this season and fans are clearly enjoying the league as Super Bowl LVIII approaches.
“All-time classic again. Any time we play Sean’s teams, it comes right down to the end,” said Kansas City head coach Andy Reid, referring to Bills coach Sean McDermott.
The game was so good that Mahomes praised Bills fans, despite Buffalo supporters attempting to hit the Chiefs star quarterback with snowballs as he attempted to connect with a young supporter in the stands.
“This is a great environment, man,” Mahomes said. “It really is. We did hear it all week, man, about playing a road game, and we’re here to prove a point and show that we can play anywhere.”
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More people watched Chiefs-Bills on Sunday than all five 2023 World Series games combined.
🏈 Chiefs-Bills: 50.39M
⚾️ World Series (combined): 45.22M pic.twitter.com/qm34bYpjrS— Front Office Sports (@FOS) January 23, 2024
While the loss ended Buffalo’s season, Kansas City advanced to the AFC Championship for a road matchup against the No. 1 seed Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.
That playoff game should also draw huge TV numbers, with likely NFL MVP Lamar Jackson facing Mahomes, the league’s reigning MVP and Super Bowl champion.
The NFC Championship features the No. 1 seed San Francisco 49ers against the Detroit Lions.
Super Bowl LVIII is scheduled for Sunday, February 11 in Las Vegas.
