With the league-leading Cowboys facing their biggest — and biggest-market — rival, NBC scored strong numbers for Sunday Night Football.
Cowboys/Giants earned a 16.5 overnight rating on the Week 14 edition of NBC’s Sunday Night Football, up 19% from Patriots/Texans last year and Patriots/Chargers in 2014 (13.9 for both telecasts). The 16.5 is tied as the highest of the season on NBC, matching the Panthers/Broncos Kickoff Game, and is tied for fifth across all networks.
The Giants’ narrow win, which peaked at a 17.2 from 11-11:30 PM ET, also tied the highest primetime overnight in Week 14 of the season since Packers/Vikings on ABC’s Monday Night Football in 1997 (17.3). Over that span, only Eagles/Cowboys in 2010 had as high a rating.
Despite the strong numbers, overnights actually declined from last year’s SNF meeting between the Giants and Cowboys, which aired in Week 1 (16.7).
Cowboys/Giants was just the third of 14 SNF telecasts this season to post an increase in the metered markets. Including NBC’s Thursday night games, it was the sixth of 19.
Dallas-Ft. Worth led all markets with a 42.3. New York, by virtue of its large size, was eighth at a 20.7. San Antonio (32.6), Austin (27.3), Albuquerque and Richmond, VA (25.9 for both) rounded out the top five.
(Sun. numbers from NBC)
