The NFL’s primary Sunday windows neared season-lows in Week 11, as the league turned in one of its softer performances in a rebound season.
Eagles-Saints scored a 12.6 overnight rating in Sunday’s Week 11 NFL national window on FOX, even with last year (mostly Patriots-Raiders) and down 18% from 2016 (mostly Eagles-Seahawks: 15.4). Those games aired on CBS.
The 12.6 is the third-lowest for the national window this season, ahead of only Week 4 (mostly Saints-Giants: 12.3) and Week 6 (mostly Jaguars-Cowboys: 12.0).
It also matches last year as the lowest for the Week 11 national window since at least 2002.
The Saints’ record-setting rout — the biggest blowout of a defending Super Bowl champion — still scored the highest overnight rating of Week 11.
Ranking a close second, Vikings-Bears had a 12.3 on NBC’s Sunday Night Football — down 9% from Cowboys-Eagles last year (13.5) but up 3% from 2016 (Green Bay-Washington: 11.9).
The 12.3 is the third-lowest for SNF this season, ahead of Bengals-Chiefs in Week 7 (11.0) and Saints-Vikings opposite the World Series in Week 8 (9.7).
As for the afternoon windows, the CBS singleheader scored a 9.3 overnight — down 10% from last year (ft. Washington-New Orleans: 10.3) and down 2% from 2016 (ft. Bears-Giants: 9.5). Those games aired on FOX. Even with the drop, CBS remains up 4% for the season.
FOX scored Sunday’s lone increase. The network’s early doubleheader window, featuring Cowboys-Falcons in 71% of markets, had a 9.1 overnight (+20%).
[Numbers from Sports Business Daily 11.19]
