Alright, so you’re watchin’ that there football game on the NFL Network, and it’s not fillin’ up your whole TV screen, right? Drives ya nuts, I bet. Like lookin’ at the game through a darn keyhole. Well, lemme tell ya, it ain’t just you, and it ain’t always somethin’ broken. Sometimes, it’s just the way they do things.
First off, these fellas makin’ the shows, they got these different picture shapes, like squares and rectangles, they call ’em aspect ratios. Some older shows or even some games are made in that old square shape, 4:3 they call it. But most TVs now, they’re long and skinny, 16:9, like a wide window. So, if the show is that old square shape, you’re gonna get them black bars on the sides, like lookin’ at a picture in a frame that’s too big.
Now, the NFL, they like to put their own stuff at the bottom of the screen, scores and news and whatnot. To do that and still show you the whole game picture, they gotta squish the picture down just a little bit. That’s why you might see them black bars even if the game is supposed to be that wide-screen shape. They ain’t tryin’ to cheat ya, they just want you to see their stuff, too.
And sometimes, yes, sometimes, it’s just a problem with the app or the TV or whatever you’re usin’ to watch. Like them phones, they got all sorts of rules about what you can and can’t do with them. Someone said you can’t even mirror that NFL Mobile thing to your TV. Sounds like a bunch of hooey to me, but that’s what they say. DRM, they call it, like it’s some kind of secret code.
- If it’s an app problem, sometimes you gotta just turn the thing off and on again, like when your grandkid messes up the computer. They call it resetting. Sounds fancy, but it just means turnin’ it off and on.
- If it’s the TV, maybe the channel ain’t in HD, even if it’s supposed to be. You gotta check them numbers, make sure you’re on the right one.
- Sometimes, it’s the internet, it goes out just like the power sometimes. You gotta wait for them fellas at the company to fix it.
- And if it’s that picture shape thing, well, there ain’t much you can do about it, unless your TV has some fancy buttons to stretch the picture. But that just makes everyone look fat and short, so I wouldn’t do it.
I heard tell some folks even get a white screen takin’ up part of the picture. Now that sounds like a real mess. Maybe somethin’ ain’t loadin’ right, or the app is just plain buggy. You might have to update it, or call them fellas at the cable company, or yell at your grandkids, see if they can fix it. They seem to know everything about these things these days.
So, next time you’re watchin’ that football game and it ain’t fillin’ up the screen, don’t go throwin’ your shoe at the TV just yet. Think about what I told ya. Is it that picture shape thing? Is it the NFL tryin’ to show you their stuff? Or is it somethin’ broken? Once you figure that out, you can either fix it, fuss about it or just learn to live with it. Just like everything else in life, I reckon.
Remember, sometimes them black bars are just there, nothin’ you can do. It’s like wrinkles, they just show up and you’re stuck with ‘em. And if everything else is workin’ right, the sound and all, then maybe it’s just how it’s supposed to be. After all, it ain’t about the size of the picture, it’s about watchin’ them boys run around and knock each other down, right? That’s the fun part.
Sometimes these things just go out for a bit. It ain’t always your fault. I heard tell the NFL Network itself went out for a whole two hours once. Can you imagine that? Two hours! Folks must have been fit to be tied. But they fixed it eventually. They always do.
So be patient, and if all else fails, there’s always the radio. They can’t mess up the screen size on the radio, that’s for sure!
Tags: [NFL, NFL Network, screen size, aspect ratio, TV, troubleshooting, sports, broadcasting, black bars, picture format, technical issues]
