Netflix now streams Inside The NFL, giving sports fans another way to watch analysis and footage from the games leading up to Super Bowl weekend.
The deal stems from a partnership with The CW for the licensing rights for the final five episodes of Inside The NFL. The show offers previously unseen coverage of each game, including unfiltered mic’d moments with commentary and analysis from a panel of seasoned football legends. The show provides highlights of each game, including sideline footage and camera angles not seen during the live broadcast.
Super Bowl champion and former safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers Ryan Clark serves as the program’s host. He is joined by former Miami Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder, Pro Bowl quarterback Jay Cutler, Pro Bowl wide receiver Chad Johnson, two-time Super Bowl champion defensive end, and Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award-winner Chris Long.
The final five episodes of Inside The NFL will air on The CW every Tuesday at 8:00 p.m. ET before streaming on Netflix every Wednesday starting January 17 at 3:00 p.m. through the week after Super Bowl weekend.
This agreement marks Netflix’s continued yet tentative steps into sports streaming. While other platforms like Hulu+ Live and Prime Video have expanded their sports offerings to include sports series and live games, Netflix only ventured into live sports late last November when it paired Formula 1 drivers with PGA Tour golfers for an eight-hole match to win the inaugural Netflix Cup title.
Netflix has partnerships with several sports leagues, including Formula 1, the Professional Golfers’ Association of America, the National Football League, the Association of Tennis Professionals, the Women’s Tennis Association, and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association.
The streamer has a slew of sports-themed films, TV series, documentaries, and unscripted series, such as Quarterback, Formula 1: Drive to Survive, Full Swing, Break Point, Untold, and Tour de France: Unchained. Netflix also has plans for upcoming series following athletes in track and field, soccer, and rugby.
Netflix marks only the latest home for Inside The NFL, which has bounced from network to streaming platform since its debut on HBO in 1977. It left for Showtime in 2008 and was cable TV’s longest-running series until it moved to streaming on Paramount+ in 2021. The CW acquired the show last June, and it debuted on the network in September.
Along with a new network home came a new cast to replace the former panel of analysts: Phil Simms, Brandon Marshall, Ray Lewis, James Brown, Julian Edelman, and Michael Irvin.
The Emmy Award-winning show has been a must-watch for football fans for decades but has seen stiff competition in recent years as other NFL Films programs and popular clips emerge on streaming platforms and social media. This contributed to the series switching network and streaming platforms, but Netflix could help the show gain a fresh audience.
Netflix grew its subscribers by 8.76 million in the third quarter of 2023. The ad-supported plan is similar to cable TV in that it has ads but significantly fewer. And at $6.99 a month, it’s less than half the cost of Netflix’s ad-free plan and considerably cheaper than a cable TV package.