The final game of the NFL preseason topped the sports ratings charts in a quiet final week of August.
Sunday’s Texans-Saints NFL preseason finale on FOX averaged a 2.4 rating and 4.23 million viewers, the largest sports audience of the weekend and second-largest of the preseason. The Hall of Fame Game averaged nearly six million on NBC. The preseason took two of the top three spots last week with Friday’s Lions-Panthers game on CBS placing third at a 1.9 and 3.43 million.
Placing second for the week was Saturday’s Navy-Notre Dame college football opener from Dublin, Ireland, which averaged a 1.9 and 3.56 million on NBC. (The full week zero chart will be available on the SMW college football ratings page.)
Rounding out the top five, NASCAR at Daytona drew a 1.8 and 3.27 million — the smallest audience on record for the race, excluding makeup races — and the Little League World Series final scored a 1.6 and 2.94 million on ABC.
A caveat to the top five is that complete figures were unavailable for the final round of the PGA Tour’s Tour Championship on CBS. The first four hours of coverage averaged a 1.4 and 2.33 million.
Beyond the top five, Sunday’s primetime coverage of the US Gymnastics Championships averaged a 1.6 and 2.66 million on NBC — up dramatically from last year (1.0, 1.54M). Simone Biles won after not participating a year ago.
