Rounding out a successful Wild Card weekend for the NFL, Vikings-Saints scored multi-year highs in ratings and viewership on FOX.
Sunday’s Vikings-Saints NFC Wild Card game averaged a 17.4 rating and 29.93 million viewers on FOX, marking the highest rated early Sunday Wild Card game in three years (2017 Dolphins-Steelers: 17.5) and the most-watched in four (2016 Seahawks-Vikings: 35.36M).
Minnesota’s overtime win, which peaked with 39.64 million in the fast-nationals, increased 13% in ratings and 18% in viewership from last year (Chargers-Ravens: 15.4, 25.38M) and 15% and 18% respectively from 2018 (Bills-Jaguars: 15.2, 25.30M). Those games aired on CBS.
Notably, ratings increased 9% and viewership 2% over last year’s Wild Card game on FOX — Seahawks-Cowboys on a Saturday night (15.9, 29.38M).
Including the streaming audience on Fox Sports’ digital platforms and the Spanish-language audience on Fox Deportes, the game averaged 30.79 million viewers.
Vikings-Saints was the third of four Wild Card games to hit multi-year highs. The lone exception was Seahawks-Eagles on NBC later Sunday, which posted slight declines from last year. Overall, the Wild Card round averaged 30.5 million viewers (+7%), a four-year high.
The game averaged a 7.9 rating in adults 18-49 (+14%) and a 5.5 in adults 18-34 (no comparison available).
As one would expect, ratings and viewership trailed the previous playoff meeting between the Vikings and Saints. The 2018 “Minneapolis miracle” Divisional Round game averaged a 19.3 and 35.65 million, with a 10.6 in 18-49.
[Nielsen estimates from Fox Sports PR, ShowBuzz Daily 1.7 a, b]
