Pro Bowl Dominates Weekend TV Ratings

Sports writers like to talk about the Pro Bowl as if it's America's most useless sporting event, and maybe it is. But the people have spoken with their remote controls, and their verdict is clear: They like the Pro Bowl just fine.

Sports Media Watch reports that the Pro Bowl got a 6.9 rating, making it the most-watched sporting event of the weekend by a large margin. It beat out a pair of NBA games (Lakers-Heat got a 2.9, Celtics-Spurs got a 2.6), a bunch of college basketball games (Duke-Boston College led the NCAA hoops pack with a 1.6), the final round of the Pebble Beach Pro-Am (2.6), NASCAR's Budweiser Shootout (4.5), and the NHL's Ducks-Red Wings game (0.9).

Awful Announcing reports that Pro Bowl ratings are actually going up, and this weekend's game was the highest-rated in eight years. So what does that mean? It means that there is exactly zero chance of the NFL getting rid of the Pro Bowl. The players' paychecks are relatively paltry, and the bulk of the TV revenues go into the league's coffers. People can complain about the Pro Bowl all they want, but it's here to stay.