NFL teams are close to getting the OK to re-air games in their markets the week after they are played. The re-air windows likely would be limited to Tuesdays or Wednesdays. Sources said they assume the games would be available only to current rightsholders that lost preseason games to the pandemic. That would mean Washington Football Team game re-airs would be on NBC Sports Washington and Jets game re-airs would only be on SNY -- cable channels that have official partnerships with the teams. Games also could be on local broadcast stations that have official partnerships with the teams -- like the Giants and WNBC in N.Y. or the Steelers and KDKA-CBS in Pittsburgh -- though sources think it is unlikely network affiliates would preempt primetime programming for replays. For the NFL, this is one way to help teams recoup pandemic-related losses this year, particularly for local TV partners. More altruistically, teams see this move as a way to better connect with their fans, especially considering the limited numbers that will be allowed to attend games during the season. Earlier in the pandemic, teams got permission to air historical broadcasts locally. Currently, in-season re-broadcasts are limited to NFL Game Pass or NFL Network. Some team execs said they may be challenged to sell the new inventory on such short notice if the policy is only now being finished, but they welcomed any new assets. Also, they suspect this could survive the end of the pandemic. “This could be the start of having it forever,” one team exec speculated.
