FOX and NBC both scored multi-year highs in Week 8 of the NFL season, while ESPN’s Monday Night Football neared a season-low.
Sunday’s NFL national window (mostly 49ers-Rams or Giants-Seahawks) averaged a 12.6 rating and 24.93 million viewers on FOX, marking the highest rated Week 8 NFL window since 2018 (mostly Packers-Rams: 12.8) and the most-watched since 2015 (Seahawks-Cowboys: 29.39M). Ratings increased 11% and viewership 15% from coverage featuring Buccaneers-Saints last year.
For the season, FOX is averaging 23.25 million viewers for its late doubleheader games, up 10% from last year.
NBC’s Sunday Night Football also hit a multi-year high in Week 8, scoring a 10.6 and 19.62 million for Packers-Bills — the highest rated and most-watched Week 8 edition of SNF since 2015 (Packers-Broncos: 13.0, 23.01M). Keep in mind it was just the second of those games that did not face the World Series.
Ratings and viewership jumped more than 20% from Cowboys-Vikings opposite the World Series last year (8.7, ~15.7M).
This year’s head-to-head between the NFL and World Series was to take place Monday night until the Astros-Phillies Game 3 was postponed due to rain. Even without that competition, Monday Night Football neared a season-low as Bengals-Browns averaged a 6.2 and 11.30 million on ESPN and ESPN2 — down double-digits from Giants-Chiefs last year (7.7, ~13.9M) and the second-smallest Monday night audience of the season.
Only Titans-Bills in Week 2 — the first half of a split-network doubleheader that aired at 7 PM ET — averaged lower numbers (4.25, 7.92M).
Returning to the afternoon games, Sunday’s FOX early window (mostly Bears-Cowboys) averaged a 6.3 (-3%) and 11.94 million (+1%). CBS posted considerably stronger numbers for its singleheader window (mostly Steelers-Eagles), but its 8.4 and 16.13 million were both down from last year.
No figures were immediately available for the Broncos-Jaguars game from London on ESPN+. As previously reported, Amazon’s Thursday Night Football rebounded from three-straight season lows with a 4.95 and 10.01 million for Ravens-Buccaneers.
(Nielsen estimates from ShowBuzz Daily 11.1, network PR)
