The NFL has four extra games to sell next season. Where will they end up?

As part of its recently approved equity deal with ESPN, the NFL has regained the rights to four games currently without a broadcast home.

The deal, which sees ESPN take ownership of NFL Network and the seven-game slate that airs on the network each season in exchange for giving the NFL a 10% equity stake in the company and returning its four annual Monday Night Football doubleheaders back to the league, was approved in time for the NFL to account for the new arrangement when creating next season’s schedule. As a result, the four games previously allotted for Monday Night Football doubleheaders are now back in the league’s control.

In other words, the NFL now has four additional games next season to sell to whatever broadcaster it wants. The question is, where will those games end up?

The conventional wisdom would suggest they’ll go to a streamer. After all, the NFL has frequently cleaved off games to sell for streamers to air exclusively in recent years. Peacock, Netflix, ESPN+, and YouTube have all aired exclusive NFL broadcasts at this point (not to mention Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football package). These one-off games have been sold for nine-figure sums, so a four-game package is no small thing.

Perhaps one of these incumbents will want to add inventory, or maybe a newcomer like Apple TV or HBO Max would want to experiment with the NFL.

Then there’s the broadcast networks: CBS, Fox, and NBC. Perhaps one of them will want to add more inventory next season.

The value in these games will inherently be tied to the schedule. If these games are made to air in exclusive windows, or even semi-exclusive windows like in the case of the Monday Night Football doubleheaders, they’ll be worth more than if they’re simply added to regional Sunday windows.

The games serve as an opportunity for both current and prospective broadcast partners to show the NFL they want to expand their relationship. And with the league considering renegotiating its media rights deals as early as this year with its current set of partners, maybe the four extra games can be leveraged in those talks.

The NFL has proven it’s nothing if not creative when it comes to carving up every bit of its game inventory. Surely, the league will find a thrifty way to maximize the value of these four games.