The End of 'NFL Total Access' and Maybe NFL Network

Highlights

NFL Total Access
aired its final episode after 20 years, signaling a possible decline for the NFL Network.
Recent moves include canceling
Total Access
, relocating
Good Morning Football
, and laying off top names.
The NFL Network’s decline began with losing Thursday Night Football to Amazon Prime, possibly leading to a hand-off to ESPN.

The final rendition of NFL Total Access aired Friday, May 17th, 2024. This show has been a weeknight mainstay for NFL Network for over 20 years now and, after many recent network changes, the news came as a shock to many. The future of the network is unknown at this point, but canceling one of its longest running shows does not bode well. The NFL released a statement, explaining the move:

Like any successful organization, the
NFL
regularly evaluates its workforce to ensure the proper support of strategic priorities including international expansion, the growth of flag football, and the evolution of digital and media platforms. We have made the difficult decision to part ways with some employees to allow us to further invest in these growth areas and ensure the continued strength of our game and the business.

Total Access was such a fixture for the NFL with its nightly in-depth analysis, highlights, and news stories. Without it, the channel will not be the same. The show has been on a downhill trajectory as of late due to the ever-changing media landscape with fans using social media, podcasts, and other avenues to access NFL news.

Another big factor in the show declining was when Rich Eisen left and created his own show, The Rich Eisen Show. Eisen is still a part of the NFL Network during the season for the pre-game shows and during the offseason for the NFL Combine, but when he transitioned from a full-time asset to only part-time, Total Access suffered.

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The NFL Network’s Recent Moves

‘Total Access’ is not the only show that has been impacted

The NFL Network has been making a lot of eyebrow-raising decisions lately that seem to have been overlooked until now. Not only has Total Access now been canceled, their other main show, Good Morning Football, has been on a two-month break as they move the show from New York to Los Angeles. This cost-cutting move may signal a turn for the worse for the network and the hosts of the show have not even indicated if they will be joining the show once the move is complete.

Additionally, the network has been laying off several of their top names, such as Michael Irvin, Andrew Siciliano, James Palmer, Melissa Stark, and Will Selva. With a lot of talent gone, their longest running show being canceled, and their other main show up in the air, the network has a lot of questions swirling as to its future.

What is The Future For The NFL Network?

NFL Network Combine — © Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

As with everything, the NFL is a business with the main goal of making money. When Thursday night games started transitioning from the NFL Network to Amazon Prime in 2022, that should have been the signal that the network was on a decline in the eyes of the league. Higher bidders and the opportunity to make more money has caused the network to move to the back burner for the NFL, and now it seems it might be phased out all together.

As of right now, the NFL is looking to offload the network possibly to ESPN, because, again, this is a business. The cost-cutting moves are in preparation for this supposed hand-off, but it will be interesting to see if NFL Network can be resurrected by ESPN.

If anything, the transition of NFL Network to ESPN will help strengthen the relationship between the broadcasting company and the league and most likely keep some of the live games with ESPN, such as Monday Night Football currently, in the future as well.

Source: NBC Sports