NFL GAMES ARE 11 MOST-WATCHED
SPORTING EVENTS SINCE SUPER BOWL
NFL Games Top 2 Shows on TV for Week
NFL Games Top Ratings in 25 Markets
Last Monday’s Packers-Vikings game on ESPN was the most-watched program of the week (Oct. 5-11) against all broadcast and cable competition with 21.8 million viewers. The CBS doubleheader game (mostly Patriots-Broncos) ranked second with 20.9 million viewers.
Including those two games, NFL games account for the 11 most-watched sporting events since Super Bowl XLIII.
Following are the most watched sporting events since Super Bowl XLIII:
| Program (Game) | Viewers |
| 1. FOX Sunday National (mostly Redskins-Giants), 9/13 | 25.1 million |
| 2. NBC Sunday Night Football (Giants-Cowboys), 9/20 | 24.8 million |
| 3. CBS Sunday National (mostly Steelers-Bears), 9/20 | 23.9 million |
| 4. FOX Sunday National (mostly Cowboys-Broncos), 10/4 | 22.0 million |
| 5. ESPN Monday Night Football (Packers-Vikings), 10/5 | 21.8 million |
| 6. NBC Sunday Night Football (Bears-Packers), 9/13 | 21.1 million |
| 7. CBS Sunday National (mostly Patriots-Broncos), 10/11 | 20.9 million |
| 7. NBC Thursday Night Kickoff Game (Titans-Steelers), 9/10 | 20.9 million |
| 9. FOX Sunday Single (mostly Falcons-Patriots & 49ers-Vikings), 9/27 | 19.3 million |
| 10. NBC Sunday Night Football (Chargers-Steelers), 10/4 | 18.4 million |
| 11. CBS Sunday National (mostly Steelers-Bengals), 9/27 | 18.2 million |
| 12. NCAA Basketball Championship (Mich. St.-UNC), 4/6 | 17.6 million |
| 13. NBC Sunday Night Football (Colts-Cardinals), 9/27 | 17.5 million |
| 14. CBS Sunday Single (mostly Ravens-Patriots & Jets-Saints), 10/4 | 16.6 million |
| 15. Kentucky Derby, 5/2 | 16.1 million |
NFL games topped the local ratings in 25 NFL markets last week against competition including the MLB Divisional Playoffs.
NFL games compared favorably in local ratings to prime-time competition:
| Program |
# of NFL Markets Ranked #1 |
| NFL Football |
25 |
| MLB Divisional Playoffs |
3 |
| Florida-LSU College Football |
2 |
Following are the NFL markets where football was the top-rated program for the week of Oct. 5-11:
| Week of 10/5-11 |
|
HH |
HH |
RTG |
|
| Market | Game |
Date |
RTG |
SHR |
Rank |
| Minneapolis* | Packers at Vikings |
10/5/09 |
58.3 |
78 |
1 |
| Milwaukee* | Packers at Vikings |
10/5/09 |
49.6 |
70 |
1 |
| Pittsburgh | Steelers at Lions |
10/11/09 |
44.3 |
74 |
1 |
| Indianapolis | Colts at Titans |
10/11/09 |
39.2 |
54 |
1 |
| Denver | Patriots at Broncos |
10/11/09 |
38.6 |
66 |
1 |
| Cincinnati | Bengals at Ravens |
10/11/09 |
34.1 |
58 |
1 |
| Kansas City | Cowboys at Chiefs |
10/11/09 |
33.8 |
61 |
1 |
| Nashville | Colts at Titans |
10/11/09 |
33.4 |
47 |
1 |
| Boston | Patriots at Broncos |
10/11/09 |
29.7 |
57 |
1 |
| Dallas | Cowboys at Chiefs |
10/11/09 |
27.4 |
53 |
1 |
| Cleveland | Browns at Bills |
10/11/09 |
27.1 |
54 |
1 |
| Buffalo | Browns at Bills |
10/11/09 |
26.9 |
55 |
1 |
| Baltimore | Bengals at Ravens |
10/11/09 |
26.9 |
54 |
1 |
| Philadelphia | Buccaneers at Eagles |
10/11/09 |
24.2 |
49 |
1 |
| Charlotte | Redskins at Panthers |
10/11/09 |
23.2 |
43 |
1 |
| Seattle | Jaguars at Seahawks |
10/11/09 |
18.9 |
43 |
1 |
| Phoenix | Texans at Cardinals |
10/11/09 |
18.7 |
37 |
1 |
| Tampa | Buccaneers at Eagles |
10/11/09 |
18.5 |
35 |
1 |
| Atlanta | Falcons at 49ers |
10/11/09 |
18.1 |
34 |
1 |
| San Diego | Packers at Vikings |
10/5/09 |
18.0 |
31 |
1 |
| Chicago | Packers at Vikings |
10/5/09 |
17.9 |
28 |
1 |
| Washington, DC | Redskins at Panthers & Packers at Vikings | 10/11/09 10/5/09 |
17.0 |
42 |
1 |
| Houston | Texans at Cardinals |
10/11/09 |
17.0 |
32 |
1 |
| San Fran-Oakland | Falcons at 49ers |
10/11/09 |
13.6 |
35 |
1 |
| Miami | Packers at Vikings |
10/5/09 |
12.6 |
20 |
1 |
* Local affiliate & ESPN combined
Source: NFL & Nielsen Media Research
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