• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, September 25, 2024

Netflix wants to "Netflix-ify" its recent association with the NFL -- basically looking to extend this pricey sports integration to promote and market other non-sports content.

This strategy was disclosed by Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters at a recent Financial Times event.

But this is not unique. ESPN's “Manningcast” -- the “Monday Night Football” simulcast with former big NFL quarterbacks Eli and Peyton Manning -- is going into its fourth season.

The Mannings offer up a living-room version of sorts with celebrities and former and current players in casual conversation while the game plays on -- via a split screen most of the time. 

Recent celebrities have included LeBron James, Jimmy Kimmel, Deion Sanders, Luke Bryan, Vince Vaughn, and Barack Obama. 

ESPN also does plenty of other “shoulder” programming -- analysis, highlights, and other content to extend its NFL brand association.

Netflix's Peters seemingly wants to head in another direction: the NFL games with Netflix on-air talent that appear on non-sports content, original TV series and movies.

Initially, analysis was that Netflix, in acquiring two live NFL Christmas Day games for the next three years, would see major boost to its still-young advertising operation. But Peters wants to go further, helping to monetize sports-focused viewers to sample non-sports programming.

Netflix has tip-toed into this area earlier. It did a special live golf competition -- “The Netflix Cup” -- mixing PGA golfers with Formula One race car drivers.  Netflix has also aired many sports documentaries on Soccer, Formula 1, Tour de France cycling teams, women's gymnastics, and boxing. 

Peters says Netflix sees the NFL not as a season long series of games but kind of a  intense, one-time big event to build wide-viewer interest during the holiday season.

Think about this: While the NFL touts big viewership across any platform, there can be lesser, lopsided competitive-blowout games. That is where ESPN's “ManningCast” guests riff and geek out on offbeat topics.

We still don't know what the Netflix-ify effect will look like specifically. Netflix might be looking for that easy, talk-show-like talk as well, at times.

The NFL-Netflix deal may make sense in terms of how the streaming giant releases all episodes of a TV series' new season all at the same time -- especially when it comes to viewer binge activity. 

Perhaps Netflix will look for more short-term, big sports “event” deals that look to pull in viewers -- existing or new subscribers -- across other content.

Netflix remains coy about what new additions it will attached into diving headlong into sports.

Given its powerful streaming market position to gain more game, expect a few untested audibles at the line of scrimmage.