The Cowboys have been so dominant in their wins this season that its starting to take a toll on the television ratings.
Sunday’s NFL national window on FOX, featuring the Cowboys’ 38-3 drubbing of the Patriots, averaged an 11.3 rating and 23.37 million viewers — down 11% and 5% respectively from last year on CBS (mostly Patriots-Packers: 12.7, 24.65M). Ratings and viewership have now declined for all four windows the Cowboys have played in this season.
Dallas’ three wins this season have each been by at least three touchdowns. Their lone loss, a relatively close Week 3 defeat at the hands of the Cardinals, was the secondary game in a window that featured the Chiefs’ rout of the Bears. (Most of the country was switched to the Cowboys game at halftime.)
Even with the declines, the Cowboys remain one of the league’s top draws — having played in three of the five most-watched windows thus far (one being the aforementioned Week 3 window that featured Bears-Chiefs). Sunday’s window ranks fifth.
In other Week 4 action, the latest edition of Monday Night Football (Seahawks-Giants) averaged a 9.2 and 16.62 million across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes — marking the most-watched Week 4 edition of MNF since Packers-Vikings in 2009, Brett Favre’s first game against his former team (21.84M).
The Seahawks’ blowout win, which peaked with 19.7 million viewers from 9:30-9:45 PM ET, increased 36% in ratings and 32% in viewership from Week 4 last season — when Rams-49ers averaged a 6.8 and 12.50 million on the ESPN cable networks alone.
Monday’s game was the first of ten Monday Night Football simulcasts added to ABC’s schedule due to strikes by Hollywood writers and actors and a resulting lack of scripted fall programming. While the writers strike ended last week, the actors strike is ongoing. In addition to expanding its MNF schedule to encompass the full season, ABC is also adding a slate of Wednesday night NBA games in January.
Based on the results for Seahawks-Giants — a thoroughly uninteresting game that was at various points mocked by announcers Joe Buck and Troy Aikman — the additional ABC simulcasts seem likely to boost the Monday night audience this season by double-digits.
Returning to the Sunday games, CBS averaged an 8.4 and 16.86 million for singleheader coverage featuring Dolphins-Bills in half the country — up 5% and 10% respectively from last year on FOX (feat. Washington-Dallas: 8.0, 15.33M). Four of six CBS windows this season have posted increases.
Regional action featuring Washington-Philadelphia averaged a 6.6 and 13.21 million on FOX, down 13% and 10% respectively from last year on CBS (mostly Bills-Ravens: 7.6, 14.64M). Six of seven FOX windows this season have declined.
As previously noted, NBC topped the Week 4 charts with a 12.9 and 24.83 million for Chiefs-Jets on Sunday Night Football.
The full list of NFL ratings this season can be seen here. For more sports ratings, see the latest weekly chart.
