After hitting a season-high in the overnights, the recent Cowboys/Giants rivalry game settled for third-place in the final ratings.
The Week 12 Cowboys/Giants NFL national window drew a 16.4 final rating and 27.9 million viewers on FOX November 24, up 9% in ratings and 12% in viewership from coverage featuring 49ers/Saints last year (15.0, 24.9M), and up 6% in both measures from coverage featuring Patriots/Eagles on CBS in 2011 (15.5, 26.2M).
The game earned the third-highest rating and viewership of the season for any NFL telecast, trailing only the Week 1 national window on FOX (16.6, 28.5M) and the Week 5 national window on CBS (16.6, 28.3M). The Cowboys have been featured in two of the top three NFL telecasts this season.
Cowboys/Giants finished comfortably ahead of the other big Week 12 game — the Broncos/Patriots “Sunday Night Football” game on NBC (15.6, 26.5M).
The early Week 12 window on FOX, featuring Panthers/Dolphins, drew an 8.9 and 14.8 million viewers — up 17% in ratings and 23% in viewership from coverage featuring Vikings/Bears last year (7.6, 12.0M), but down 10% and 5%, respectively, from coverage on CBS in 2011 (9.9, 15.6M).
(Week 12 finals from Nielsen)
