Ratings Fumble for NFL Surprises Networks, Advertisers

This is paywalled but the crux of it is that NFL's viewership has been in decline (something in the ballpark of 11-17%) the past year due to their desire to make things political and partisan.

The NFL game is increasingly designed to appeal to a superficial viewer who expects exciting special effects, and also to fantasy sports/gambling addicts. I don’t think the heart of TV viewership is really in either one of those categories.

A lot of the appeal of sports and entertainment is based on escape from politics and serious concerns. Bring them into those areas and, by definition, the audience will grow smaller.