It is a safe bet CBS wishes it still had the NFC full time.
The Week 11 NFL national window, featuring Eagles/Seahawks in 78% of markets, had a 13.6 final rating and 24.4 million viewers on CBS Sunday afternoon — down 12% in ratings and 11% in viewership from coverage featuring Packers/Vikings last year (15.5, 27.5M) and down 10% and 8%, respectively, from coverage featuring Eagles/Packers in 2014 (15.1, 26.5M), both of which aired on FOX.
The telecast, which also included Patriots/49ers, hit season-highs in both ratings and viewership for CBS, which had previously topped out at a 12.6 and 22.0 million for the Week 3 national window. It ranks fifth in both measures overall, trailing three national windows on FOX and the Kickoff Game on NBC.
Though a season-high, Sunday’s telecast was not exactly a strong draw. It was the eighth of 11 national windows to post a year-over-year decline, including all six on CBS. In addition, it would have ranked just seventh out of the nine national windows on CBS last season (not including Week 17).
Earlier in the day, regional action featuring Ravens/Cowboys in 72% of markets had a 10.2 and 17.6 million — up 26% in ratings and 28% in viewership from coverage featuring Washington/Carolina last year (8.1, 13.7M) and up 23% and 26%, respectively, from coverage featuring Seahawks/Chiefs in 2014 (8.3, 13.9M).
It was the highest rated and most-watched early doubleheader window this season, regardless of network, topping the previous highs of 9.4 and 15.9 million on FOX the previous week. It also posted the second-biggest increases of any window thus far, trailing only Saints/Panthers on Thursday Night Football days earlier — which increased 93% in ratings and 101% in viewership thanks to a move from cable to broadcast.
(Wknd. numbers via ShowBuzz Daily 11/22)
