NBC drew criticism from viewers after its November 8, 2026, broadcast of Sunday Night Football omitted the U.S. national anthem prior to the kickoff between the Chicago Bears and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The decision to leave the pregame ceremony off the airwaves drew particular scrutiny because the game was played at Chicago's Soldier Field—a stadium originally built as a memorial to American service members—just three days before Veterans Day on November 11, 2026, and amid the NFL's annual Salute to Service campaign.

According to reporting from OutKick, the broadcast transitioned directly from a booth introduction featuring analyst Cris Collinsworth and play-by-play announcer Noah Eagle—who was filling in for Mike Tirico due to a health issue—into a pregame interview with Bears quarterback Caleb Williams. Following the interview and coverage of the Bears' trade for defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, the telecast cut to an aerial shot of the stadium showing flag bearers carrying a folded, field-sized American flag back into a stadium tunnel.

While NBC aired its customary opening theme song featuring Carrie Underwood, audiences at home never saw "The Star-Spangled Banner."

The Broadcast Sequence and Viewer Backlash

Because Sunday Night Football consistently ranks among the highest-rated primetime broadcasts on American television, its pregame run-of-show is closely watched. Viewers quickly took to social media to point out the contrast between airing the network's promotional "show anthem" with Underwood while cutting out the actual national anthem during a week dedicated to honoring military personnel and veterans.

As documented by Marca and The Economic Times, online critics accused the network of disrespecting veterans and military families, with some commenters threatening to cancel their subscriptions to NBC and its streaming platform, Peacock. While these social media reactions reflect a vocal segment of the audience rather than measured polling, the timing of the omission amplified the controversy.

Other networks leaned heavily into military tributes during the same weekend; Fox Sports, for instance, promoted a two-day military salute across its college football and NFL programming ahead of the November 11 holiday.

Reports vary slightly regarding the exact framing of the in-stadium events. While coverage from NDTV Sports notes that the anthem ceremony took place inside Soldier Field while being left off the television feed, other outlets such as Total Pro Sports focus strictly on its absence from the NBC telecast, with the departing field-sized flag serving as the primary visual indicator that the ceremony had just concluded.

Network Discretion and Renewed Policy Debates

The omission is not a violation of league protocol. As noted by WFMD and The News Tribune, the decision to air the national anthem is made by the broadcasting network rather than the NFL or the individual football clubs.

League rules do not mandate that networks televise the anthem in full before every game, leaving pregame formatting to the editorial discretion of television producers, who routinely reserve broadcast windows for commercial breaks, player features, and roster analysis.

However, the backlash revived broader cultural debates surrounding the NFL and the anthem. According to The News Tribune, the incident prompted renewed discussion among fans regarding President Donald Trump's past demands for strict changes to NFL national anthem rules, alongside fresh calls from viewers urging the league to require networks to broadcast the ceremony before every game. There is no indication in current reporting that Trump commented directly on the November 8 broadcast from Chicago.

Previous Anthem Scrutiny at Soldier Field

The November 8 telecast was not the first time the pregame ceremony at a Bears home game generated headlines during the 2026 season. As detailed by Межа and OutKick, an earlier controversy unfolded on September 28, 2026, prior to a Monday Night Football matchup broadcast on ESPN and ABC.

During that game, the Bears hosted the Chicago-based ensemble Mariachi Herencia de Mexico to perform an instrumental mariachi arrangement of "The Star-Spangled Banner" as part of the team's Hispanic Heritage Month "Vamos Bears" celebration. The arrangement drew mixed reactions from viewers, and the broadcast also caught attention for showing an injured Caleb Williams—who had previously been photographed standing on the sideline during a September 20 game against the Minnesota Vikings—casually pacing the sideline while limited by a hamstring injury. While some commentary speculated that NBC may have opted to skip the anthem on November 8 to avoid potential on-field controversies, no evidence has emerged to confirm that theory.

Unanswered Questions from NBC

For viewers wondering why the ceremony was cut and what it means for future broadcasts, the network's silence leaves several questions unresolved.

Did NBC explain why the national anthem was omitted?

No. OutKick reported that it reached out to NBC Executive Vice President of Communications Greg Hughes and Senior Vice President of Communications Chris McCloskey to ask why the anthem was left off the Soldier Field broadcast.

As cited by The Spun, neither executive had responded by the time the initial reports were published, leaving the network's rationale unconfirmed.

Are television networks required to air the anthem during NFL games?

No. Standard NFL broadcast partners—including NBC, CBS, Fox, and ESPN/ABC—typically reserve full televised anthem performances for marquee events such as the Super Bowl, Thanksgiving Day games, the season kickoff, or specific commemorative broadcasts. On standard weeks, networks control the pregame clock and usually prioritize studio analysis and sponsorship obligations unless an editorial decision is made to feature the stadium ceremony.

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