The Saints and Eagles delivered a viewership record to NBC Saturday night.
Saturday’s Saints/Eagles NFC Wild Card game drew a 19.1 final rating and 34.4 million viewers on NBC, up 10% in ratings and 14% in viewership from Vikings/Packers last year (17.3, 30.3M), and up 5% and 8%, respectively, from Lions/Saints in 2011 (18.2, 31.8M).
Saints/Eagles ranks as the highest rated Saturday Wild Card game since Cardinals/Cowboys in 1999 (21.2), and the most-viewed ever (dates back to 1990). In addition, the game earned the third-largest NFL audience on NBC since the network resumed airing games in 2006, trailing only Super Bowl 44 in 2009 and Super Bowl 47 in 2012.
Overall, NBC’s “Wild Card Saturday” doubleheader averaged 30.8 million viewers on NBC — up 14% from last year (26.9M), and the most-viewed ever. The previous mark was 30.6 million in 2011.
New Orleans was the top market for Saturday’s game (55.8), followed by Philadelphia (42.0). Richmond, VA (27.3) was the top neutral market.
