Full Breakdown
NBC Drops Pro Football Focus Rankings from Sunday Night Football Player Intros
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Change to the Broadcast
) and instead showed only the athlete’s name and hometown. The adjustment marked the first time in years that the Sunday Night Football (SNF) presentation omitted the data-driven rankings that had been a staple of the pre-game segment.
Context and Possible Reasoning
Awfulannouncing reported that the shift may be linked to PFF’s recent corporate sale. Earlier in 2026, PFF’s enterprise data were sold to Teamworks in a deal reportedly worth $100 million, leading to staff layoffs on the content side.
Watt’s Reaction
Watt, who has repeatedly criticized PFF’s grading methodology, called the removal “a fantastic development” on social media. He reiterated his long-standing objection that PFF grades are “made-up numbers” and that projecting them on nationally televised games misleads viewers.
Verbatim Quotes
- “The number one issue with PFF by far, bar none, hands down, is their player grading system and the fact that they project it everywhere, including nationally televised games on Sunday night where everybody’s watching,” — J. Watt, CBS lead analyst
- “You can't watch film on the TV copy and make a grade,” — J. Watt, CBS lead analyst
- “The number one issue with PFF by far, bar none, hands down is their player grading system and the fact that they project it everywhere, including nationally televised games on Sunday night where everybody’s watching. And they make it underneath the rankings, where it states as fact ’91st out of 97th defensive tackles.’… that is a completely made-up number,” — J. Watt, CBS lead analyst
