They may be the exception to the rule, but the Dallas Cowboys are making a mockery of the NFL ratings panic.
Cowboys/Giants earned a 14.9 rating and 26.5 million viewers on the Week 14 edition of NBC’s Sunday Night Football, per Nielsen fast-nationals — up 21% in ratings and 26% in viewership from Patriots/Texans last year (12.3, 21.0M) and up 16% and 25%, respectively, from Patriots/Chargers in 2014 (12.8, 21.2M).
The Cowboys’ second loss of the season, which peaked with 28.1 million viewers from 11:30 PM ET through the conclusion, delivered the NFL’s largest primetime audience in Week 14 of the season in 27 years — since 49ers/Rams on ABC’s Monday Night Football in 1989.
The 14.9 rating is tied as the highest for a primetime game in Week 14 since Eagles/Cowboys in 2010 (15.2), matching another Giants/Cowboys matchup the following year.
Overall, Cowboys/Giants ranks as the highest rated and most-watched NFL game on NBC this season — topping the previous highs of 14.6 and 25.2 million for the Panthers/Broncos Kickoff Game. Going back further, it was NBC’s highest rated and most-watched regular season game since the last time it aired a Giants/Cowboys game — Week 1 of last season (15.4, 26.8M).
Regardless of network, Sunday’s matchup ranks fourth in ratings and sixth in viewership among NFL games this season. The Cowboys have played in the four highest rated games and five of the six most-watched.
In a season marked by the gnashing of teeth over NFL ratings, the Cowboys have been lighting up the Nielsen scorecard in recent weeks. Prior to the 27-year high for Sunday’s game, Dallas played in the most-watched Thursday Night Football game all-time the previous week (21.8M against the Vikings) and the most-watched NFL regular season game regardless of window since 1995 (35.1M against Washington).
Figures do not include the 208,000 who streamed the game on NBC and NFL digital platforms, which NBC says is a Sunday Night Football record (presumably not including the Kickoff Game, as Panthers/Broncos had 278,000). With those numbers added to the mix, the game had 26.7 million viewers.
(Sun. numbers from NBC Sports Group Press Box 12/12)
