The NFL’s annual Thanksgiving Day tripleheader was a mixed bag in the overnights.
The Week 13 Raiders/Cowboys NFL regular season game drew a 14.8 overnight rating on CBS Thursday, up 2% from Washington/Cowboys on FOX last year (14.5), but down 3% from Dolphins/Cowboys on CBS in 2011 (15.3).
Raiders/Cowboys was the top draw of Thanksgiving Day, marking the first time since 2009 that the Cowboys’ late afternoon game has topped the Lions’ early game in the overnights. The 14.8 is also the fifth-highest for any NFL game on Thanksgiving since at least 1998.
Over on FOX, Packers/Lions drew a 14.1 overnight — down 7% from Texans/Lions on CBS last year (15.2), and down 11% from Packers/Lions on FOX in 2011 (15.8). The 14.1 is the lowest for one of the afternoon Thanksgiving games since 2009.
As usual, the primetime Thanksgiving game brought up the rear. NBC’s Steelers/Ravens game drew an 11.8 overnight, up 3% from last year’s Patriots/Jets blowout (11.5), and up 97% from 49ers/Ravens on NFL Network in 2011 (6.0).
Keep in mind that last year’s Thanksgiving Day games took place in Week 12 of the season, as opposed to Week 13.
(Thanksgiving overnights from Sports Business Daily)
