Are you still ready for Thursday night football? TV thinks so

You can't bring down the NFL. Despite allegations of misconduct by stars such as Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, public-relations fumbles and evidence of brain damage in former players, professional football has never been more popular — or more lucrative.

That's why CBS shelled out $275 million to air just eight Thursday night games, including the Vikings and Packers.

"NFL football is the single best product on network television," CBS President Leslie Moonves told TV critics this summer. "This is a sure thing."

Moonves' belief is backed up by the numbers. If fans are turned off by the NFL's woes, it's not reflected in the ratings.

Sunday night broadcasts on NBC are the most-watched program on television. DirectTV just signed an eight-year contract with the NFL, believed to be worth $1.5 billion annually, for exclusive rights to "NFL Sunday Ticket," which provides access to every Sunday afternoon game.

But some believe the sport's blitz will come back to haunt it.

When the NFL expanded its presence on Thursday night, Twin Cities radio personality Dan Barreiro wasn't concerned about football overkill. But, exhausted by the off-field behavior and a series of prime-time yawners this season, he's ready to change his mind.

Among the most vocal critics: Mark Cuban, owner of basketball's Dallas Mavericks.

"I think the NFL is 10 years away from an implosion," he told reporters earlier this year. "Pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered and [the NFL is] getting hoggy. When you try to take it too far, people turn the other way. When you've got a good thing and you get greedy, it always, always, always, always, always turns on you. That's rule No. 1 in business."

So far, the league hasn't taken a noticeable hit. Ratings for last Sunday's afternoon games were up 7 percent compared with a year ago. Last Thursday's game — a 45-14 rout by the New York Giants over Washington — averaged 16 million viewers, nearly twice as many as last year, when Thursday games ran exclusively on cable's NFL Network.

According to Advertising Age, CBS is charging nearly $500,000 for a 30-second commercial. The only show that consistently charges more than that? Sunday night games on NBC, at $627,000 a pop. NBC's Football Night in America" is TV's most watched program, averaging nearly 22 million viewers, up 2 percent from last season.

The only blip: ESPN's "Monday Night Football" broadcast is down 12 percent from a year ago — but it's still cable's most popular show.

To Costas, NFL football is "not just a sports juggernaut. It's a cultural juggernaut. At a time when everything is in niches, football brings everybody under one tent."

That universal appeal helps make networks very rich. But it also puts pressure on them to soft-pedal stories that reflect badly on the league, like Ray Rice punching out his girlfriend in a hotel elevator.

So far, there's little evidence that anyone is downplaying the story. In fact, CBS morning anchor Norah O'Donnell was plenty tough on NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in her exclusive interview. On its Thursday night premiere, the network scrapped an opening video featuring Rihanna and a comedy segment, giving CBS anchor Scott Pelley extra time to brief viewers on the latest developments.

Cable sports giant ESPN, however, has taken flak for its sometimes cozy relationship with the league.

Last year, the network pulled out of a partnership with PBS' "Frontline" after ESPN executives saw footage from a joint documentary, "League of Denial," examining the link between football concussions and permanent brain damage. And it suspended commentator Bill Simmons for a podcast ripping Goodell's handling of the Rice incident.

"They don't pick up the phone and say, 'I wish you hadn't said that,' or 'You can't say that,' " Seeman said. "We have a standard here to be honest and fair and candid. Our guys have very, very strong opinions, and they do their homework."

That's not to say broadcasters aren't looking for positive stories whenever they can find them. Talk on Twin Cities radio has shifted from Peterson's indictment on child-abuse charges to Vikings rookie Teddy Bridgewater's impressive performance Sunday.

"This is the way it works," Barreiro said. "During the week, some people who consider themselves sensitive and socially aware say, 'Maybe I shouldn't be as addicted to the game,' but by the time it comes to Sunday, they can't help themselves. I got a lot of e-mails after the Peterson incident saying, 'That's it. I'm done.' I don't know how much I can trust that."

Peterson, who faces criminal charges that he beat his 4-year-old son, won't return to the field until at least 2015.

One fan also sounds fairly determined not to return to the game anytime soon.

Not anymore. The behavior exhibited by Rice and Peterson offended her so much, she no longer tunes in.

"I've got a bag of purple clothes and I won't even take them to Goodwill, because I don't want anyone wearing them," she said. "The only way there's going to be changes in the NFL is if people stop watching."