Tom Brady’s Buccaneers debut hit a viewership high on what was an up-and-down NFL opening weekend.
Sunday’s Week 1 NFL national window (Buccaneers-Saints in 91% of markets) averaged a 13.2 rating and 25.85 million viewers on FOX, marking the NFL’s largest Week 1 audience in four years — since FOX averaged 27.53 million for coverage featuring Giants-Cowboys in 2016.
Overall, the telecast delivered the tenth-largest NFL regular season audience since 2016. Brady has played in four of the top ten.
Versus last year’s Week 1 national window (mostly Giants-Cowboys) ratings fell 2% (from 13.5) but viewership increased 7% (from 24.22M). Compared to two years ago (mostly Cowboys-Panthers), ratings were flat and viewership jumped 11% (from 23.30M).
Earlier in the day, FOX averaged a 7.2 (-3%) and 13.53 million (+6%) for coverage featuring Packers-Vikings in a plurality of markets — the network’s most-watched Week 1 early window since 2016 (15.76M).
FOX was an exception in a Week 1 marked by declines for the league’s other broadcast partners.
NBC averaged a 10.4 and 18.94 million for Cowboys-Rams on Sunday Night Football, the least-watched Week 1 edition of SNF since 2008 (Bears-Colts: 18.35M) and the lowest rated since ESPN last held rights in 2005 (Colts-Ravens: 7.4). As previously noted, NBC’s Kickoff Game last Thursday night also declined.
On Monday night, ESPN averaged 10.76 million viewers for Steelers-Giants and 7.70 million for Titans-Broncos — down 18% and 28% respectively from last year’s season-opening Monday Night Football doubleheader of Texans-Saints (13.08M) and Broncos-Raiders (10.62M). The games averaged 10.81 and 7.73 million including ESPN Deportes.
Titans-Broncos delivered the smallest Week 1 NFL audience on any network since at least 2000, falling below the previous mark of 7.88 million for a FOX regional window in 2008.
Finally, CBS averaged a 7.4 (-18%) and 13.59 million (-12%) for singleheader coverage featuring Dolphins-Patriots in a plurality of markets, its least-watched season opener in three years (2017: 13.34M).
As goes without saying, soft numbers for the NFL are massive by any other standard. In just one weekend of play, the NFL delivered seven of the eight largest sports audiences since the NFL Draft in April. The national window was the most-watched TV program since the Super Bowl, surpassing the Academy Awards in February (23.57M).
The NFL also delivered television’s seven highest ratings in adults 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54 since the aforementioned Academy Awards. The FOX national window (7.9 in 18-49; 6.1 in 18-34; 9.4 in 25-54), Kickoff Game (6.7; 5.3; 7.8) and Sunday Night Football (6.2; 4.6; 7.5) each topped the Academy Awards to rank as TV’s top shows in the respective demos since the Super Bowl.
For the full list of Week 1 NFL ratings, including local ratings in select markets, see the NFL ratings page.
