For the second-straight year, Netflix has the honor of broadcasting the NFL games on Christmas Day.
As a result, the streaming service has incorporated its own flare to the football broadcasts, from different analysts to Netflix-inspired graphics. Netflix also tried to add a new wrinkle to the broadcast, mid-game interviews with NFL greats, but they didn't go as planned.
Both Netflix games had technical issues during the interviews, along with just a general poor reception for incorporating something that wasn't really part of the game. Here's how fans reacted to this decision by Netflix.
MORE: Why are the NFL Christmas games on Netflix?
Netflix Christmas mid-game interviews
Netflix broadcasted the first two games of the Christmas Day slate on Thursday, with the Washington Commanders hosting the Dallas Cowboys and the Detroit Lions facing the Minnesota Vikings. However, theses games combined to feature no teams in playoff contention, with the Lions the lone team even still alive in the postseason race.
Perhaps as a way to make the games more intriguing, Netflix decided to produce interviews with legends of these teams during the game. For the Cowboys-Commanders game, it was Emmitt Smith and Clinton Portis who made an appearance, and in the Lions-Vikings game, it was Barry Sanders in the first half and Cris Carter in the second half.
These interviews weren't received well, though, as fans just wanted to watch the football. It didn't help that the former players had varying degrees of audio issues on their ends.
"Can we please get in-game interviews with Emmitt Smith and Barry Sanders?"
— Funhouse (@BackAftaThis) December 25, 2025
-Nobody
hey netflix why are we face timing emmitt smith to check in on the cowboys franchise? There's a football game, can we watch that maybe? I feel like i'm watching nfl nextwork on a tuesday afternoon.
— Patrick Kerrane (@PatKerrane) December 25, 2025
Netflix needs to scrap the Zoom interviews during live play. They're legends, but people tune in to watch the games, not hear what Emmitt Smith and Barry Sanders have to say.
— Will Ragatz (@WillRagatz) December 25, 2025
The equipment that Barry Sanders is using to do his in-game interview. Pic.twitter.com/lMntQXZons
— John Kriesel (@johnkriesel) December 25, 2025
Lions playoff hopes are on the line and they're down on the road but they're just chatting with Barry Sanders?
— Justis Mosqueda (@JuMosq) December 25, 2025
I don’t understand why the Netflix broadcast is just casually interviewing Clinton Portis during a super critical stretch of this game.
— Ben Axelrod (@BenAxelrod) December 25, 2025
Lions playoff chances on the line in a game in the second half and were asking Cris Carter mid game his favorite Snoop Dogg song
— Football Analysis (@FBallAnalysisYT) December 25, 2025
Netflix only broadcasts these two games this year, so the service wanted to stand out from the competition. Unfortunately, the interviews didn't land.