TV viewers in St. Louis upset when Fox affiliate turned away from Rams’ blowout loss

Maybe the Chiefs really are making inroads in St. Louis now that the Rams have left the state. But it also seems fans in St. Louis really, really like watching the Rams lose.

After last season, the Rams bolted for Los Angeles, which not surprisingly upset quite a few people back in St. Louis. But those jilted Rams fans apparently are are not shedding any tears that the 4-8 Rams are struggling in their new home.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Fox affiliate in St. Louis switched away from Rams’ game to New England (which the Patriots led 23-3 in the fourth quarter) because the game wasn’t competitive. Fox instead showed the end of the Lions’ 28-13 win over the Saints (it was 19-13 in the fourth quarter).

The closer game didn’t entice fans to say tuned in.

The Post-Dispatch reported that the Rams’ loss was drawing an 8.8 rating from 2:15-2:30 p.m., but when the switch was made, the ratings fell to 7.7 for the final 30 minutes or so. That story also says that people contacted the station to say they were upset that Rams game had been replaced.

“The hilarious thing is that in the past people were mad at us when they were struggling and we were (obligated to carry Rams) games and they wanted to see the Packers, the Eagles, the Patriots, whoever happened to be the game of the week,” sports director Martin Kilcoyne told the Post-Dispatch. “People would voice their complaints, ‘Can you switch (out of the Rams’ game),’ which sounds crazy in the home market. Now we switch and they’re mad, because they want to see them lose.”

Guess what game those fans ended up watching? Yep, the Chiefs.

The Post-Dispatch story says that the ratings for the Chiefs game were at 8.1 during the last half hour it was up against the Rams game. When the Rams game was changed, the Chiefs’ ratings on the CBS affiliate jumped to 9.1.