CBS 21 regrets to inform fans of the Pittsburgh Steelers that Sunday's game at 1 p.m. against the Cincinnati Bengals will not be shown in the Harrisburg-Lancaster-Lebanon-York television market.
CBS 21 is scheduled to air the Baltimore Ravens' game at Seattle at 4:05 p.m., instead.
Why can't CBS 21 air both games?
Prior to the season, the National Football League determines on which weekends CBS or FOX will air a doubleheader -- two NFL games on the same network. The schedule breaks down likes this:
Week 1 - FOX DH
Week 2 - CBS DH
Week 3 - FOX DH
Week 4 - CBS DH
Week 5 - CBS DH
Week 6 - FOX DH
Week 7 - FOX DH
Week 8 - CBS DH
Week 9 - FOX DH
Week 10 - FOX DH
Week 11 - CBS DH
Week 12 - CBS DH
Week 13 - FOX DH
Week 14 - CBS DH
Week 15 - CBS DH
Week 16 - FOX DH
Week 17 - Both CBS and FOX have doubleheaders
As noted above, Sunday, November 13 (Week 9), is designated a FOX doubleheader weekend by the NFL; which means CBS is allowed to show only one game that day (while FOX airs two games).
Due to the fact this television market is designated a Ravens "secondary market" -- based on our proximity to Baltimore -- CBS 21 must air the Ravens' games when the team is on the road, per NFL broadcast rules.
Had CBS had the doubleheader on Sunday, November 13 and not FOX, this wouldn't have been an issue: CBS 21 could have carried the Steelers at 1 p.m. and shown the Ravens at 4 p.m., as well.
Also, if Baltimore was playing Seattle at home (and not on the road), CBS 21 could have chosen to air the Steelers' game as it's single game. The NFL figures fans of the Ravens within a secondary market can attend the game in-person; that's why CBS 21 has some leeway when Baltimore has a home game. We can choose to air a Steelers' game and we always do. Again, there is no choice this coming Sunday.
I hope that explanation makes sense.
CBS 21 is happy it can accommodate fans of the Baltimore Ravens. We also understand the frustration of Steelers fans in instances like this one.
