Weak 11: Fans Finding Other Things to Do, Empty Seats Fill Stadiums Everywhere

With the NFL’s Week 11 action wrapping up, it quickly became clear that football fans had found other things to do as thousands of empty seats could be seen in stadiums from coast to coast.

With TV ratings off nearly 20 percent over all and the networks already known to have lost up to $500 million in ad revenue, it is becoming clear that last year’s 12 percent decline wasn’t because of the raucous political season, a claim that served as the excuse for the 2016 season’s ratings loss.

The ratings slide is reflected in the skimpy attendance at the stadiums, too, with Week 11 photos showing that there are still empty seats galore.

To cite just a few:

As the Cincinnati Bengals beat the Denver Broncos, it appears that Denver fans stayed home from Mile High Stadium. Lots of unsold seats available:

The situation was no better in Cleveland at First Energy Stadium as the Browns got crushed both in attendance and by the Jacksonville Jaguars, 19-7:

The New York Giants may have toppled the Kansas City Chiefs in a 12-9 final, but fans weren’t there to see it at Met Life Stadium:

The Green Bay Packers apparently didn’t pack the stands as they got totally blown out by the Baltimore Ravens in a pitiful 23-0 final. But, the crowd at Lambeau Field was just as pitiful:

Still, the Packers game was a sea of humanity compared to the number of empty seats at Hard Rock Stadium as the Miami Dolphins lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30 to 20:

Finally, the Houston Texans were able to beat the Arizona Cardinals 31-21, but were not able to fill seats as effectively:

With some analysts saying that the worst of the TV ratings fall may have peaked for 2017, the seats in stadiums are still going unfilled with only 6 more weeks of the season to go.

Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.