The latest chapter of the Cowboys-49ers rivalry was a ratings bonanza, posting the second-largest Divisional Round audience on record.
Sunday’s Cowboys-49ers NFL NFC Divisional Round game averaged a 21.8 rating and 45.65 million viewers on FOX, marking the most-watched Divisional Round game since Packers-Cowboys six years ago (26.1, 48.52M) and the second-most watched on record.
Keep in mind out-of-home viewing was not tracked in Nielsen viewership estimates prior to 2020. Excluding the out-of-home audience (4.62M), the in-home audience of 41.03 million viewers trailed several games from the pre-OOH era — including seven in the past 12 years alone: Steelers-Broncos in 2016 (42.95M), Cowboys-Packers (44.38M) and Colts-Broncos (41.82M) in 2015, Chargers-Broncos in 2014 (41.21M), Giants-Packers in 2012 (45.12M) and Jets-Patriots in 2011 (43.46M). (On a household rating basis — an apples-to-apples comparison as it by definition does not include out-of-home viewing — the 21.8 rating is not among the ten highest for a Divisional Round game.)
The 49ers’ win, which peaked with 51.52 million viewers from 9:30-9:45 PM ET, increased a tick in ratings and 7% in viewership from Bills-Chiefs on CBS last year (21.7, 42.74M). It averaged an additional 1.86 million streaming viewers not tracked by Nielsen, making it the most-streamed Divisional Round game across Fox Sports’ digital platforms.
As one would expect, Cowboys-49ers ranks as the most-watched game of the NFL season, surpassing the previous high of 42.06 million for Giants-Cowboys on Thanksgiving.
Earlier in the day, Bengals-Bills averaged a 20.1 and 39.32 million on CBS — up 1% in ratings and 3% in viewership from Rams-Buccaneers on NBC last year (19.8, 38.14M) and the most-watched Divisional Round game in the early Sunday window since the previously-mentioned Cowboys-Packers game in 2014 (44.38M). Excluding the out-of-home audience (4.17M), the in-home audience of 35.15 million trails Texans-Chiefs three years ago (35.40M) and Seahawks-Panthers in 2016 (36.68M).
In addition to the standard out-of-home caveat, historical comparisons for the Sunday games are also skewed by the fact that the games now air in later timeslots (3:00 and 6:30 PM ET) than prior to 2020 (1:00 and 4:30).
On Saturday, Jaguars-Chiefs scored a 16.0 and 32.31 million on NBC, up 1% in ratings and 5% in viewership from Bengals-Titans on CBS last year (15.8, 30.75M) and the most-watched early Saturday Divisional Round game since Ravens-Patriots in 2015 (34.05M). Excluding the out-of-home audience (4.43M), the in-home audience of 27.88 million trails Vikings-49ers three years ago (29.29M), Colts-Chiefs in 2019 (29.14M), Seahawks-Falcons in 2017 (28.70M) and Chiefs-Patriots in 2016 (31.50M).
The Chiefs’ win, which peaked with 37.5 million from 7:15 PM ET through the conclusion, averaged an additional streaming audience of 2.02 million across Peacock and the other NBC and NFL digital platforms — a streaming record for NFL games on NBC, excluding the Super Bowl.
The only dud of the weekend was the Eagles’ Saturday night rout of the Giants on FOX, which averaged a 13.6 and 28.64 million — down 23% in ratings and 22% in viewership from last year (Packers-49ers: 17.8, 36.92M) and the lowest rated primetime Divisional Round game yet. Excluding out-of-home viewing (3.89M), the in-home audience of 24.75 million is the lowest for any Divisional Round game since Cardinals-Panthers in 2009 (23.78M).
(Nielsen estimates from ShowBuzz Daily 1.24, network PR)
